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Milkman

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Milkman

By: Anna Burns
Narrated by: Bríd Brennan
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About this listen

WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2018

'Milkman is extraordinary. I've been reading passages aloud for the pleasure of hearing it. It's frightening, hilarious, wily and joyous all at the same time.' - Lisa McInerney, author of The Glorious Heresies

In this unnamed city, to be interesting is dangerous. Middle sister, our protagonist, is busy attempting to keep her mother from discovering her maybe-boyfriend and to keep everyone in the dark about her encounter with Milkman. But when first brother-in-law sniffs out her struggle, and rumours start to swell, middle sister becomes 'interesting'. The last thing she ever wanted to be. To be interesting is to be noticed and to be noticed is dangerous.

Milkman is a tale of gossip and hearsay, silence and deliberate deafness. It is the story of inaction with enormous consequences.

©2018 Anna Burns (P)2018 Faber Audio Contemporary Fiction Genre Fiction Fiction Thought-Provoking Witty Funny Scary

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All stars
Most relevant
memorable Joycean brutal beauty with
blow your mind honesty and exploratory prose- engaging from first sentence

best journey into the young female psyche ever

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Great voice this narrator. the author plays with time and layered fragments of story but overall you develop a strong impression of Belfast during the Troubles and the oppressive atmosphere. there is a lot of telling but you never feel told.

fantastic debut work whic works on audible

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Mixed feelings about Milkman by Anna Burns from the Booker shortlist. There are some flashes of pure genius and insight about what it is like to be a bit different in a community which polices everything everyone does. But the style isn’t always easy to follow even though the narrator is fantastic. Having only read the blurb when I bought it, I actually didn’t realise for a while 😳 this was a book set during the Troubles in Northern Ireland as people and places aren’t named and it isn’t obvious from the description. I think I may have enjoyed it slightly more having known what the book was about and some aspects were fascinating, but I didn’t love it.

Mixed feelings

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I was glad I got this book via Audible, as it was a 'hard enough listen' and would certainly have been an extrenely 'hard read' in places. The style of giving multiple choices or nuances of meanings (and even lists in places) I found quirky, and at first, enjoyable and interesting, as she was obviously trying to find the right word for a tricky feeling or experience. But that initial enjoyment moved to mild iritation and occasional annoyance further into the book as, surely no one can be THAT unsure of how they felt, on EVERY situation!
On a positive note, I enjoyed the: 'Nuclear boy', '3rd Sister' etc convention of referring to people, refreshing and really helpful. As a 'person from over the water', I found the book a reminder of just how much we had added to the already tense and complex lives that were lived, particularly during the period covered by the book.
I'm glad I was patient and stayed with it to the end.

An insight into 'the troubles'.

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The Narrator does a very good job of reading this book, I cannot fault her at all. However, the story is good, but very let down in my opinion, by over explaining every single metaphor, etc. At several points I very nearly gave up, but forced myself to listen to the end.
The whole idea behind the story is an excellent one, as here on the mainland we had no idea of the the day to day living in Northern Ireland in the 1970's and beyond. But because the author "waxed the lyrical" far too much for me and therefore lost my attention too often, in the end I didn't care for any of the characters or their lives at all in the end. Given the subject matter, this was a shame.

Slow, very slow

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