Absolution

A Novel

By: Alice McDermott

Narrated by: Jesse Vilinsky, Rachel Kenney

Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Long-listed, Vogue Magazine Best Books of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Esquire Magazine Best Books of the Year 2023

Long-listed, Barnes and Noble Best New Books of the Year 2023

Long-listed, NPR Best Book of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Time Magazine Best Books of the Year, 2023

PEN/Faulkner Award: Nominee, 2024

Long-listed, Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Oprah.com Best Books of the Year, 2023

Long-listed, Los Angeles Times Best Books of the Year, 2023

"A breath of fresh air."—BookPage

"Both narrators bring deep emotional tonality...this exceptional listen will foster deep book club discussions."—Booklist

"Alternately gripping, moving, and thought-provoking...this is an audiobook to savor."—AudioFile

A riveting account of women’s lives on the margins of the Vietnam War, from the renowned winner of the National Book Award.

You have no idea what it was like. For us. The women, I mean. The wives.

American women—American wives—have been mostly minor characters in the literature of the Vietnam War, but in Absolution they take center stage. Tricia is a shy newlywed, married to a rising attorney on loan to navy intelligence. Charlene is a practiced corporate spouse and mother of three, a beauty and a bully. In Saigon in 1963, the two women form a wary alliance as they balance the era’s mandate to be “helpmeets” to their ambitious husbands with their own, inchoate impulse to “do good” for the people of Vietnam.

Sixty years later, Charlene’s daughter, spurred by an encounter with an aging Vietnam vet, reaches out to Tricia. Together, they look back at their time in Saigon, taking wry account of that pivotal year and of Charlene’s altruistic machinations, and discovering as they do how their own lives as women on the periphery—of politics, of history, of war, of their husbands’ convictions—have been shaped and burdened by the same sort of unintended consequences that followed America’s tragic interference in Southeast Asia.

A virtuosic new novel from Alice McDermott, one of our most observant, most affecting writers—about folly and grace, obligation, sacrifice, and, finally, the quest for absolution in a broken world.

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

©2023 Alice McDermott (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

"Rachel Kenney and Jesse Vilinsky each deliver spellbinding interpretations of Alice McDermott's superb new novel.... Kenney performs the remarkable feat of personifying the young Tricia and her wry older self, fierce Charlene, and many local Vietnamese and GIs. Vilinsky, as Charlene's daughter, Rainey, creates an invaluable vocal throughline for the characters while crafting a believable adult child tussling with the legacy of a complicated parent. Alternately gripping, moving, and thought-provoking, this is an audiobook to savor." (AudioFile; winner of AudioFile Earphones Award)

"Alice McDermott has always been one of our greatest writers but here she exceeds every expectation. Absolution is one of the finest contemporary novels I've read. It is a moral masterpiece."—Ann Patchett, author of The Dutch House

"With Absolution, Alice McDermott delivers another elegantly written, immaculately conceived novel that immerses the reader in the contradictions and moral ambiguities of the human heart. McDermott is a storyteller who aims for the stars. Absolution takes us there, by way of wartime Saigon, and with a powerful reminder that good intentions can have consequences that jerk us awake over a lifetime. What a splendid, compelling book this is."—Tim O'Brien, author of The Things They Carried

"Damning and dazzling, this is the story of a Vietnam we never got in history class—a story of innocence lost, the bounds of womanhood tested, and our nation held to account."—Charley Burlock, Oprah Daily

"For more than 40 years, McDermott’s deep understanding of human nature and wizardry in creating characters has been the seedbed of one bestselling, award-winning novel after another. Now she has outdone herself with an exquisitely conceived and executed novel that explores her signature topic, moral obligation, against the backdrop of the fraught time preceding the Vietnam War . . . This transporting, piercing, profound novel is McDermott’s masterpiece."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The narration was brilliant…totally engrossing and beautifully spoken

Loved EVERY minute. Never wanted this audiobook to end. An unforgettable story, I cannot recommend this format for McDermott’s stunning novel, enough.

The skill of the author

This was an interesting story that gave a look into characters and tried to figure out what motivated them during the years in the early 1960s. Listen intently so you do not miss any of the important facts.

Saigon in the early 60’s

I was a child in Saigon during this time. I was one of those attending the movie that was bombed by the VC. My father was briefly chief of the Saigon CIA station after Richardson was dismissed. Henry Cabot Lodge was ambassador. Robert Mc Namera was at our house when Lodge won the New Hampshire primary. Mc Namara and McCone, CIA director, phoned Lodge from our house (right next door to Lodge) to congratulate him. They all thought it was hilarious. Dad was on the Taylor mission and told Kennedy our presence there was a mistake. I don’t think many women had their rooms prepared for afternoon naps or wore stunning clothes.

Doing good

I think this book is really about how best to do good in the world. The phrase white savior is mentioned in passing, and really so many of us try to do good things while making false assumptions about what others need and want. Having a good and open heart is essential and certainly Charlene in the book has one. She’s also very good at organizing and implementing plans that she hopes will help people but in the end our narrator sees the flaws in Charlene’s personality — her insistence on doing everything her way, Dom is another essentially good character who knows how to love the world and to do good. I feel that we can learn from each of these characters and in our own flawed ways attempt to do some good while always remembering the importance of self determination and dignity.

Interesting but…

I appreciated the unique historical perspective and it’s an important story to be told. Still I wonder about the ultimate point. So please listen and chime in.

Thought provoking

Excellent character development in a well written story about relationships. Relating to place, others and reflecting on how you are seen by others.

The meaning, or purpose of the story was not clear

Really like the character Charlene, and would have liked for the book to be more about her. There were many times where I thought more detail would come with an interesting situation, but that never seemed to develop. Mcdermott’s writing is so beautiful but I found this book boring

Fascinating story about a time not usually written about.

Having lived through the early 60s and remembering them vividly I appreciate Alice McDermott’s portrayal of the role of women, the US involvement in Viet Nam, our obsession with the Kennedys, and our lack of knowledge at the time in so many medical areas. As usual she has a thorough knowledge of the Irish Catholic family and the readers learn so much about that from her.

Untold

Enjoyed being told from a wife’s perspective about the importance of being able to have opportunities to help be helpful and all the questioning that comes with it.

Slow and moving

Took me some time to connect with this book. The themes and characters representative of the setting and times (1960s culture, gender norms and early Viet Nam.) Almost quit more than half way through. The last half pulled me in when the story lines connected. 3.5 stars.