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Mother's Boy
- A stunning novel of Cornwall, war and hidden love
- Narrated by: Patrick Gale
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
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Publisher's Summary
From the best-selling author of A Place Called Winter comes Mother's Boy, a superb historical novel of Cornwall, class, desire and two world wars.
Laura, an impoverished Cornish girl, meets her husband when they are both in service in Teignmouth in 1916. They have a baby, Charles, but Laura's husband returns home from the trenches a damaged man, already ill with the tuberculosis that will soon leave her a widow. In a small, class-obsessed town she raises her boy alone, working as a laundress and gradually becomes aware that he is some kind of genius.
As an intensely private young man, Charles signs up for the navy with the new rank of coder. His escape from the tight, gossipy confines of Launceston to the colour and violence of war sees him blossom as he experiences not only the possibility of death, but the constant danger of a love that is as clandestine as his work.
Mother's Boy is the story of a man who is among yet apart from his fellows, in thrall to yet at a distance from his own mother; a man being shaped for a long, remarkable and revered life spent hiding in plain sight. But it is equally the story of the dauntless mother who will continue to shield him long after the dangers of war are past.
Critic Reviews
"One of the joys of Gale's writing is how even the smallest of characters can appear fully formed, due to a charming wickedness alongside deeper observations." (Irish Times)
"A writer with heart, soul and a dark and naughty wit, one whose company you relish and trust." (Observer)
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-07-2023
Beautifully written and wonderfully narrated
I knew nothing about Charles Causley, and was interested and moved by this depiction of what certainly would have been true for some. Life in shadows, lived superficially - as was expected.
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- Amazon Customer
- 14-04-2022
Absolutely brilliant
I love Patrick Gale’s writing and this was no exception. What a wonderful storyline and creative way to tell the life’s tale of a Cornish poet. This will sit with me for a long time.
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- Amazon Customer
- 17-06-2022
I love Patrick Gales writing and he is also a wonderful narrator.
This book is one of his best although I love all of them. Highly recommend.
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- Anonymous User
- 15-04-2023
Boring
I needed to listen to this book for my book group. I found it slow and quite frankly not my genre.
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