The Absolutist Audiobook

Quotes

• “A novel of immeasurable sadness, in a league with Graham Greene’s The End of the Affair. John Boyne is very, very good at portraying the destructive power of a painfully kept secret.”

  — John Irving, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Cider House Rules

• “A wonderful, sad, tender book that is going to have an enormous impact on everyone who reads it.”

  — Colm Toibin, New York Times bestselling author of Nora Webster

• “Narrator Michael Maloney provides a flawless rendition of the story. His impeccable timing, coupled with a deep, soulful English accent, makes this novel a thrilling audio experience. Maloney slowly introduces the atmospheric first few pages using authentic character voices to support the text and employs a varied pace to draw us into the mysterious plot. It all adds up to a rare combination in which text and voice create an unforgettable book. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award. Finalist for the 2013 Audie Award.”

  — AudioFile

• “What begins as a slow-building World War I period piece…grows deeper, more curious, and uneasy as it progresses—and midway through this sad and beautiful story, you realize you’re in the hands of a quiet master. Piling questions atop half-truths, John Boyne…has crafted a taut and tragic tale of love and war, with a kick-in-the-gut ending.”

  — Amazon.com, editorial review

• "(In) Boyne’s fiction, there’s a sense that people are fundamentally the sum of their traumas…Boyne’s narrative grip is strong.”

  — Literary Review (London)

• “An outstanding read, very highly recommended.”

  — Historical Novel Society

• “Political, personal, powerful…a fiercely interrogative novel that asks not just what it means to be a man but also what it means to be a human being in the extreme circumstances of war.”

  — Irish Times

• “The Absolutist is a riveting look into what drives the relationships we have in spite of the world around us.”

  — Seattle Gay News

• “In this relentlessly tragic yet beautifully crafted novel, Boyne documents the lives of two inseparable men navigating the trenches of WWI and the ramifications of a taboo involvement.”

  — Publishers Weekly

• A thought-provoking and surprising page-turner that for some readers may recall Ian McEwan's Atonement, another novel with themes of war and recrimination.

  — Library Journal Starred Review