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  • The Testament of Mary

  • By: Colm Tóibín
  • Narrated by: Meryl Streep
  • Length: 3 hrs and 6 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (131 ratings)
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The Testament of Mary

By: Colm Tóibín
Narrated by: Meryl Streep
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Editor reviews

Praise for The Testament of Mary:

"This is a short book, but it is as dense as a diamond. It is as tragic as a Spanish pieta, but it is completely heretical...Tóibín maintains all the dignity of Mary without subscribing to the myths that have accumulated around her" (Edmund White, Irish Times)"A beautiful and daring work...it takes its power from the surprise of its language, its almost shocking characterization" (Mary Gordon, New York Times)

Summary

Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2013

The unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of The Testament of Mary, the powerful new novel by Colm Tóibín, read by Meryl Streep.

From the author of Brooklyn, in a voice that is both tender and filled with rage, The Testament of Mary tells the story of a cataclysmic event which led to an overpowering grief. For Mary, her son has been lost to the world, and now, living in exile and in fear, she tries to piece together the memories of the events that led to her son's brutal death. To her he was a vulnerable figure, surrounded by men who could not be trusted, living in a time of turmoil and change.

As her life and her suffering begin to acquire the resonance of myth, Mary struggles to break the silence surrounding what she knows to have happened. In her effort to tell the truth in all its gnarled complexity, she slowly emerges as a figure of immense moral stature as well as a woman from history rendered now as fully human.

Colm Tóibín's The Testament of Mary is the moving story of the Virgin Mary, told by a novelist famous for writing brilliantly about the family.

Colm Tóibín was born in Ireland, in 1955. He is the author of six novels, including The Blackwater Lightship, The Master (both of which were shortlisted for the Booker Prize), and Brooklyn, which won the Costa Novel Award, and two collections of stories, Mothers and Sons and The Empty Family.

©2014 Penguin Audio (P)2014 Penguin Audio

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What listeners say about The Testament of Mary

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Beautiful writing, beautifully read

If you could sum up The Testament of Mary in three words, what would they be?

Poetic, painful, important

What did you like best about this story?

The Testament of Mary invites the reader to see the events of the New Testament through the eyes of the woman at the centre of everything who is so often overlooked. As an atheist with an interest in theology, I expected to find the content interesting, knew that the writer was of an excellent quality and know that I really enjoy Meryl Streep's work (who doesn't?!) - yet I did not expect to feel so moved. This is a deeply personal story of woman who's narrative is, in so many ways, dictated by the men around her. I loved it.

Which character – as performed by Meryl Streep – was your favourite?

The story is told entirely from the perspective of Mary in the last few days of her life, looking back. Streep performs the part expertly.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, absolutely - though (perhaps particularly as this story is not a long one) I don't want to ruin anything. Mary's realisation that she is no longer autonomous in the remembering of her grief was really quite upsetting.

Any additional comments?

Whether you are religious or (like myself) rather decidedly not, this is a beautiful, moving, thought-provoking story that is well worth your time.

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12 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

no pause at the end

If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

good book but there is literally NO PAUSE AT THE END between the soft, beautiful ending and the harsh, clangy Audible spoken note at the end that crashed in like an unwanted drunk uncle at a funeral at x10 the volume of the book.

i'm not even exaggerating when i say it has sort of ruined the whole experience of the book for me. how hard is it to leave a 10 second pause at the end

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Exceptional

Meryl Streep is completely brilliant. She IS Mary; her reading takes you to that whole other world. The 'story', tho world-known, is recognisable but with an incredible whole other take on it - the mother, the woman......

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Amazing!

This is the second Colm Toibin book (after Brooklyn) I have listened to here. The Testament of Mary gives a plausible historical account to some extent. Meryl Streep reads it superbly! Loved it.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Imaginative treatment of amazing story

a trifle obscure at times but held the listener enthralled. graphic descriptions a trifle upsetting

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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My goodness, how overwhelmingly beautiful.

I have rarely listened to anything so perfectly narrated.

This is a kind of writing so rare and accomplished that it seems to erase the very nuts and bolts of its own construction.

Reading it can produce an experience that feels close to miraculous.

Hilary Mantel’s Cromwell novels have it, Sebastian Barry’s novels have it and the oh so stunning From a Low & Quiet Sea by Donal Ryan has it.

It’s not merely a matter of technical mastery, though of course that’s a prerequisite.

As a Catholic who has not practiced for many many years, it’s power is otherworldly.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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stunning

as a Catholic this is a fantastic conceit Chilling Memorising beautifully written and performed

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Such an interesting read

Growing up in catholic Ireland there was just one narrative of the story of Jesus. This observation of the same story seems so personal and at times emotionally enjoyable.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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Highly recommend

Don't be put off this because of the religious aspect because really that's almost irrelevant. This is a mother's story. I have no religious beliefs but Jesus as a historical figure interests me. I've often mused about his family, what did they think about it all? Evidently so did the author. This is a beautifully written story, read very well by Meryl Streep. Of course we can never know the reality but I found it totally believable. I loved this book.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

simply fabulous.

A tour de force for Meryl Streep. A perfect match of evocative text and storytelling.

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