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Letters from an Unknown Woman: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.05) - 160 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
With her children evacuated and her husband at the front, Tory Pace is grudgingly sharing the family home with her irascible mother, working at the local gelatin factory—to help the war effort, and generally doing just about as well as could be expected in difficult times. Her quiet life is thrown into turmoil, however, when her prisoner-of-war husband, Donald, makes an outrageous demand for sexual gratification. He wants a dirty letter! Horrified, at first, that Donald is being turned into some sort of monster by the Nazis, Tory's disgust gradually gives way to a sense of marital duty, and taking in the libraries, bookshops, public conveniences, and barbers' shops of South-East London, she begins a quest to master the language of carnal desire—a quest that takes a sudden and unexpected turn into far more dangerous territory.
Beginning with an act of unintentional cannibalism, and flirting with a scheme to end world hunger by the use of protein pills, Letters from an Unknown Woman ranges widely across the continent and yet always returns home: to family, to people, to relationships. Woodward offers a prescient examination of the ways in which we both nurture and consume each other in the face of adversity.
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"dark, comic and complex look at relationships during ww2 and post war of the head/pace family where the husband becomes a pow and asks his wife for dirty letters which he passes around the camp and then events post war which has many twist and turns as relationships change and social changes too"
— Stephen (4 out of 5 stars)
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“A sharp corrective to the stately-homes lens through which Americans often view the historical Brits…a setting quite dreary and sick-making, yet pierced with brutal shafts of beauty, humor and heartbreak.”
— The New York Times -
“A comic sensibility closer to Alan Bennett or Tom Sharpe. Woodward’s rueful amusement isn’t frivolity, it’s a world view.”
— Financial Times -
“Woodward’s brilliant exploration of ordinary lives caught in extraordinary circumstances showcases an imaginative wit, pointed insight, and a flare for the unexpected.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“Readers who enjoy the unexpected and stories with a skewed comic sensibility should seek out this novel.”
— Library Journal
Letters from an Unknown Woman Listener Reviews
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" Strange one this, I didn't really dislike it but it was ok. It read a bit like a saga and had some funny bits in but cannot really say that I would be rushing to read any more by this author. "
— Erika, 1/11/2014 -
" Liked beginning, but it took a turn for the dark side midway through and I lost interest. Did not finish it. "
— Valerie, 1/1/2014 -
" Great book! Left me suprised, shocked, and predicting what would happen next. "
— Bonnie, 12/27/2013 -
" Interesting read. The ending is not quite as I would have expected, quite subtle. But a nice little story "
— Robyn, 12/25/2013 -
" It was fine. The main character was rather self-absorbed and other characters were only marginally discussed. "
— Lizzy, 12/21/2013 -
" 'Nourishment' is written in a manner so as to be intriguing and surprising throughout. Some moments are laugh out loud funny while some are shocking, somewhat depressing and dark. A novel filled with many interesting ideas and many more quirky yet believable characters. A very good read. "
— Joe, 12/11/2013 -
" Strangely compelling, though very British "
— Ruth, 12/11/2013 -
" A novel full of black humour and fine world war 2 London characters. Depicts with wit and honesty the challenges of great cast of characters. Would be a great movie! "
— Lisa, 10/29/2013 -
" The characters in this book seemed real and not-real at the same time, and I've been waffling between three and four starts. It definitely kept my interest. "
— Amy, 6/13/2013 -
" Slightly hilarious, slightly misanthropic, slight in general, but absorbing. "
— Supriya, 5/19/2013 -
" This was a good read until it got to the end and it seemed to just stop. I was left feeling that I wanted to know so much more about the characters. Disappointed with the ending. "
— Andrea, 4/27/2013 -
" A great but little known writer. Top book. Check out his arsenal if you like real life representations from various decades. "
— Rob, 3/3/2013 -
" Beautifully written and a wonderful dark British humour! I enjoyed the scene when Tory Pace and her mother Mrs Head, after an air raid that destroyed the butchers shop, eating a leg of pork and all of a sudden they're not sure if they've eaten a roast or the butchers leg! "
— The, 12/9/2012 -
" A bit surprised it ended when it did, but I thoroughly enjoyed the absurd, but heartbreaking plot. Some amazing writing. "
— Jennifer, 11/6/2012 -
" Started out with an interesting premise, but I was depressed by the end of it. "
— Miriam, 10/31/2012 -
" First part of book was promising but, in my opinion, it fell a part by the middle. "
— Helen, 9/18/2012
About Gerard Woodward
Gerard Woodward is the author of a number of novels, including Nourishment and an acclaimed trilogy comprising August (shortlisted for the 2001 Whitbread First Novel Award), I’ll Go to Bed at Noon (shortlisted for the 2004 Man Booker Prize), and A Curious Earth. He was born in London in 1961 and published several prizewinning collections of poetry before turning to fiction. His collection of poetry We Were Pedestrians was shortlisted for the 2005 T. S. Eliot Prize. He is professor of creative writing at Bath Spa University.
About Davina Porter
Davina Porter has been enthralling listeners for over twenty-five years with her ability to mine the psychological depths of the characters she reads and bring them convincingly to life. In 2006, she won the prestigious Audie Award for Best Female Narration and in 2004 for Best Inspirational Literature Narration. She has been honored as an AudioFile Golden Voice and has won nineteen AudioFile Earphones Awards. As an actress, she has appeared on stage at the Vineyard Playhouse and the Square One Theater, among others.