The Secret Scripture

By: Sebastian Barry

Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon

Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

Roseanne McNulty, once one of the most beautiful and beguiling girls in County Sligo, Ireland, is now an elderly patient at Roscommon Regional Mental Hospital. As her 100th year draws near, she decides to record the events of her life, hiding the manuscript beneath the floorboards.

Meanwhile, the hospital is preparing to close and is evaluating its patients to determine whether they can return to society. Dr. Grene, Roseanne's caretaker, takes a special interest in her case. In his research, he discovers a document written by a local priest that tells a very different story of Roseanne's life than what she recalls. As doctor and patient attempt to understand each other, they begin to uncover long-buried secrets about themselves. Set against an Ireland besieged by conflict, The Secret Scripture is an epic story of love, betrayal, and unavoidable tragedy.

©2008 Sebastian Barry (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Above all it is the surpassing quality of Mr. Barry's language that gives it its power....It is like a song, with all the pulse of the Irish language, a song sung liltingly and plaintively from the top of Ben Bulben into the airy night." ( New York Times)

Falling in love with a novel

I quickly fell in love with this novel, enhanced by the lovely audible performance by Wanda McCaddon. This is a profoundly mournful novel, about grief, the vagaries of memory, the dogma of the old Catholic Church. Barry writes in a lyrical style, vivid, sensitive, wise. I savored every sentence of this novel—beautiful sentences, one following another. And a story so fragile, handled by Barry with nuance and perfect comprehension of each character. One of the most masterfully constructed, painted, and delivered works of fiction I have read.

Not for the weak!!

I started to listen to this once and couldn't stick with it. A few weeks later I started it again... and I had a hard time putting it down!!! It's a great book! Really makes you think about all we have and take for granted!!

Created a time of reflection and gratitude

Roseanne lost everyone she had love for. Which left her with bone chilling loneliness. She walked a road of such despair and yet remained a woman of open acceptance and cautious connection with the people she was able to meet in her limited world. I have so many blessings in my life. I should experience more true gratitude when compared to this main character. She may not be real, but it would not be wrong to make a comparison of her life to yours. The undercurrent of joy she had for simple pleasures despite her emotional wounds and scars is refreshing. The narrator did a lovely job.

loved first half

I loved the first half, but lost a little interest in the second half mainly because the the story after she married was hard to believe....no way would such a happy couple end their relationship without talking to eachother over a simple hike in the mountains one day where she crossed paths with another man. it was just frustratingly stupid. if I misunderstood this, then my apologies.

Destined to be a classic!

A book meant to be listened to. The beautiful flow of story and language was enchanting. This is one of a handful of books that touched my heart.

A thoughtful listen

Initially, I found the narrator's pace to be too fast. Eventually either she slowed down or I grew accustomed to the pace. Once that was achieved, I was mesmerized by the story, the mystery, the suspense, and the prose. A well-written and beautifully narrated thought provoking novel... I would definitely recommend it.

deep, spiritual, thought provoking

Where does The Secret Scripture rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's about middle of the pack. It kept my interest but wasn't a gripping thriller.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Secret Scripture?

I liked the reflective moments of Roseann. I enjoyed her view of history as thru a misty blurred glass.

Have you listened to any of Wanda McCaddon’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

never can...but enjoyed getting back to it.

Any additional comments?

It's a nice rambling story. The end could be predictable if you were thinking that way...I wasn't, so the ending was a nice surprise. I enjoyed the telling of Irish history as the story unfolded. It was kinda unbelievable that someone writes in their diary with such flowing words and detailed descriptions as Roseann did. I enjoyed reading the literary prose and forgot about the fact that it was the diary of a 100 yr old lady. Her mind certainly would not be working that way...but you forget that and just enjoy the story.

Touching Story--Audio

It still astonishes me what self-righteous religious people will do to others who they deem are not as deserving of the favor of God as themselves. This is a remarkable story of a woman who would not become a Catholic. Because of this, and the religious beliefs of those who opposed her, her life was destroyed. She writes this story at the age of 100 in the asylum were she has spent much of her life.

I liked the narrators accent but the recording was a little difficult to hear. I think it is the quality of the recording not the narrator. I found I had to listen to it at a much higher volume than I usually use and at times I had to rewind, put both earphones on and re-listen with no background noise in order to understand everything.

good twist very good book

book kind of starts slow intrigues you enough for what remains and ends strong enjoyed

Different from my normal reading.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I enjoyed this story of an elderly lady in a mental hospital. Hearing the snippits of her life and how she ended up where she was fascinated me.