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The Exhibitionist
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
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The Exhibitionist
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Summary
THE TIMES NOVEL OF THE YEAR
A GUARDIAN BEST BOOK OF 2022
A GOOD HOUSEKEEPING BOOK OF THE YEAR
Meet the Hanrahan family, gathering for a momentous weekend as famous artist and notorious egoist Ray Hanrahan prepares for a new exhibition of his art—the first in many decades—and one he is sure will burnish his reputation for good.
His three children will be there: beautiful Leah, always her father’s biggest champion; sensitive Patrick, who has finally decided to strike out on his own; and insecure Jess, the youngest, who has her own momentous decision to make....
And what of Lucia, Ray’s steadfast and selfless wife? She is an artist, too, but has always had to put her roles as wife and mother first. What will happen if she decides to change? For Lucia is hiding secrets of her own, and as the weekend unfolds and the exhibition approaches, she must finally make a choice.
The longer the marriage, the harder truth becomes . . .
The Exhibitionist is the extraordinary fifth novel from Charlotte Mendelson, a dazzling exploration of art, sacrifice, toxic family politics, queer desire and personal freedom.
Critic reviews
"It takes the most ferocious intelligence, skill, and a deep reservoir of sadness to write a novel as funny as this. I adored it." (Meg Mason)
"A devastating treat of a novel: funny, furious, dark and delicious." (Sarah Waters)
"Delicious, heartbreaking.... Fabulously written and utterly compelling." (Marian Keyes)
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What listeners say about The Exhibitionist
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- nav248
- 25-05-22
Great read, easy to listen to and couldn't stop
It was a good read, very descriptive and realistic of how family dynamics work in a dysfunctional family. Some bits reminded me of my own family even. But the ending was quite abrupt and left at a bit of a cliff hanger.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- jojo
- 08-05-22
Bloody great.
Very funny, very ouch family relations. Put a bully in the centre and the dreadful emotional standoffs and habitual reactions we can all be party to in the gorgeous swamp of kith and kin get ready to explode.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 12-06-22
This is a Tricky One
For such a funny book it had such a depressing plot. None of the characters bar one are particularly likeable and he doesn't feature very much at all. The main character is a complete monster.
Like I say it was very funny in a dru sort of way and it did become gripping towards the end.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Rachel Redford
- 08-04-23
An over-stuffed disappointment
Oh dear, what a disappointment! Juliet Stevenson reads as beautifully as ever, capturing all the inside and outside facets of these characters, but the text is sorely flawed.
Charlotte Mendelson writes well – her observations are acute, her accounts of sexual obsession assured, and her line in similes (there must be hundreds of them) are witty and even laugh aloud. But her characters are SO ridiculously overdone that I totally lost sympathy and interest.
The exhibitionist is Ray on the day of his Gallery opening for what proves to be a humiliatingly unsuccessful exhibition of his over-rated artworks. A perfectly promising scenario BUT Ray is such a gargantuan monster of narcissistic egotism; his crushed-artist wife Lucia such a craving doormat pandering to his every outrageous whim; his favourite daughter so insanely and repellently keen to soothe, flatter and protect ‘poor Dad’; Lucia’s son who lives in a caravan is such a way-out disaster…….
Everything is so hugely over-packed and exaggerated that I lost any belief in any of them and found them increasingly irritating. Did we really need (however well and sensitively described it was) Lucia’s breast cancer and her sexual experiences after the operations? Her affair and choice of partner recalled (perhaps because Juliet Stevenson also read it, Louise Doughty’s Apple Tree Yard with all its way out of control sexual madness. By the time I got to the final sentences which disclosed Lucia’s final decision, I’d lost interest.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- M. C. Burns
- 05-12-23
Loved it!
Fantastic descriptive sentences, marvellous characters and a bravura performance!
This review platform does not value succinctness, so I am adding these extra words.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 17-07-23
Sucked the life out me
I did not enjoy the story but stuck with it as the narrator was great. It just felt so whiney and depressing. I guess the title said it all. What an absolute c😢🥺t.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- diana lowe
- 31-08-22
Loved it
I loved this story because it was about the struggles of being an artist, a wife, and a mother.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- EJB
- 01-08-23
Just a great book
Within minutes your immersed into the lives of entire family. Such well written characters and scenes. I laughed out loud and gasped in places. A fabulous combination of author and narrator. Juliet Stevenson is as wonderful as you’d expected Totally immersive
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- SD
- 02-02-24
nothing
story was too long, full of dismal characters. could not sympathise with any of them. only read half....
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Patricia
- 27-04-22
Couldn’t even finish… save your money
Not even Juliet Stevenson could save it. I made it to 45 minutes left and just couldn’t manage to finish.
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3 people found this helpful