The Children Act cover art

The Children Act

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

The Children Act

By: Ian McEwan
Narrated by: Lindsay Duncan
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

Fiona Maye is a leading High Court judge, presiding over cases in the family court. She is renowned for her fierce intelligence, exactitude and sensitivity. But her professional success belies private sorrow and domestic strife. There is the lingering regret of her childlessness, and now, her marriage of thirty years is in crisis.

At the same time, she is called on to try an urgent case: for religious reasons, a beautiful seventeen-year-old boy, Adam, is refusing the medical treatment that could save his life, and his devout parents share his wishes. Time is running out. Should the secular court overrule sincerely held faith? In the course of reaching a decision Fiona visits Adam in hospital – an encounter which stirs long-buried feelings in her and powerful new emotions in the boy. Her judgment has momentous consequences for them both.

 Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Political Heartfelt Inspiring Thought-Provoking

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Kiss and Kin cover art
Olive Kitteridge cover art
Cara Massimina cover art
Change of Heart cover art
My Brilliant Friend cover art
The Earth Will Shake cover art
A Conflict of Interest cover art
The Aviator's Wife cover art

Critic reviews

Compulsively readable... McEwan’s prose keeps its cutting edge and his books are the ones the reading public still crave… A masterly balance between research and imagination… One feels an immediate pleasure in returning to prose of uncommon clarity, unshowiness and control
Classic McEwan… It’s a pleasure from start to finish, one not to be interrupted
A powerful, humane novel
One of the finest writers alive
McEwan writes as beautifully and elegantly as ever, his prose quintessentially English in its restraint, one meticulously chosen word hinting at depths of emotion
A finely written, engaging read… Poignant, challenging and lyrical
A class act by one of our finest novelists. (Viv Groskop)
A compelling moral dilemma [with] a moving and heartfelt denouement.
Shows McEwan as a master of fiction. (Olivia Cole)
It is one most extraordinary, powerful, moving reading experiences of my life. It is an utterly remarkable novel, delicately balanced, perfectly crafted, beautifully written. (Alberto Manguel)
All stars
Most relevant

If you could sum up The Children Act in three words, what would they be?

Fascinating, thought provoking.

What other book might you compare The Children Act to, and why?

Apple Tree Yard, only because it deals with a professional woman, who outwardly has her life under tight control.

Have you listened to any of Lindsay Duncan’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Lindsay Duncan is perfect although when portraying a 17 year old she is a touch patronising.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Who judges the judges?

Any additional comments?

McEwan always educates with his books and this is another example of exceptional writing along with scrupulous research. I think Ian McEwan must be a kind and thoughtful man.

A KIND NARRATIVE

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Any additional comments?

I have not come across Ian McEwan before. I found this to be a very good audiobook. The narration was excellent (although the editing missed a repeated phrase), it was well written, with well drawn characters. For a male author, McEwan caught the experience of a successful professional woman really well, although I would have liked the issues in her personal life to have been expanded upon much more. There was plenty of scope to make it a longer, but still punchy, book . I have worked a lot in family law (not as a Lawyer or Judge) so was very drawn into the narrative of Fiona's work which was realistic and absorbing. However, this story would also be very appealling to anyone who enjoys court room drama.

Unusual tale, well written and gripping!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I was never sure where this was going and I don't think he author knew some of the time. Rambling on and almost a series of short stories with no gap in between.

Not sure where this was going!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
narrator was perfect. story was intriguing and well researched in terms of childrens rights. rather an abrupt ending but not disappointing

well researched

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this book. Beautifully written in a concise way. I particularly enjoyed the analysis of the legal issues and moral dilemmas. The narration is wonderful.

Powerful stuff

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews