Book cover of A History of Loneliness

Book description

Odran Yates enters Clonliffe Seminary in 1972 after his mother informs him that he has a vocation to the priesthood. He goes in full of ambition and hope, dedicated to his studies and keen to make friends. Forty years later, Odran's devotion has been challenged by the revelations that have…

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Why read it?

1 author picked A History of Loneliness as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

The honesty of the book surprised me. The author, an Irishman, didn’t hold back in detailing the terrible part the Catholic Church played in Ireland, when many children were the victims of abuse by priests. Most young men who joined the priesthood had a vocation, but others merely followed family tradition or were victims of family pressures. So, where does the blame lie?

The victims and the accused are fundamental to the book, but as important are the witnesses who did nothing to protect the children. I was drawn into the dilemma of the main character. It left me wondering…

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No Good Deed by Jennifer Barraclough,

Marriage. Memory. Medicine. Malice.

A tragicomic novel about the toxic relationship between two couples who first met at medical school and whose paths cross again many years later.

Charlotte is married to Henry, a retired consultant pathologist. She abandoned her own medical training after a harrowing experience left her emotionally…

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