• Beach Music

  • A Novel
  • By: Pat Conroy
  • Narrated by: Jonathan Marosz
  • Length: 26 hrs and 57 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (2,745 ratings)

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Beach Music  By  cover art

Beach Music

By: Pat Conroy
Narrated by: Jonathan Marosz
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Publisher's summary

Pat Conroy is without doubt America's favorite storyteller, a writer who portrays the anguished truth of the human heart and the painful secrets of families in richly lyrical prose and unforgettable narratives.

Now, in Beach Music, he tells of the dark memories that haunt generations, in a story that spans South Carolina and Rome and reaches back into the unutterable terrors of the Holocaust.

Beach Music is about Jack McCall, an American living in Rome with his young daughter, trying to find peace after the recent trauma of his wife's suicide. But his solitude is disturbed by the appearance of his sister-in-law, who begs him to return home, and of two school friends asking for his help in tracking down another classmate who went underground as a Vietnam protester and never resurfaced. These requests launch Jack on a journey that encompasses the past and the present in both Europe and the American South, and that leads him to shocking--and ultimately liberating--truths.

Told with deep feeling and trademark Conroy humor, Beach Music is powerful and compulsively readable. It is another masterpiece in the legendary list of classics that his body of work has already become.

©2009 Pat Conroy (P)2009 Random House

Critic reviews

"Astonishing...stunning...the range of passions and subjects that brings life to every page is almost endless." (The Washington Post Book World)

“Reading Pat Conroy is like watching Michelangelo paint the Sistine Chapel.” (Houston Chronicle)

“Magnificent... Beach Music is clearly Conroy’s best.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

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What listeners say about Beach Music

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    1,951
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    482
  • 3 Stars
    195
  • 2 Stars
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Performance
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    1,729
  • 4 Stars
    387
  • 3 Stars
    146
  • 2 Stars
    45
  • 1 Stars
    42

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Pay Conroy WORDSMITH!!

Loved it! I will most definitely read this again, as I have re-read many of his books. Pat Conroy captured me with THE WATER IS WIDE. I am forever grateful for his words.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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What kind of devil’s work is this accent??

I am Southern, born and raised. I realize this narrator THINKS he is speaking with with a low country South Carolina accent, but let me tell you, this man is ruining a Southern writer’s work with his horrific narration. If you don’t have an appropriate regional accent, for the love of Pat Conroy, don’t try to fake one! My ears are bleeding.

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  • CJ
  • 10-23-17

lovely story telling

beautiful use of words. touching story. I laughed and I cried. starts slow but soon hooks you.

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Best book I've ever read.

Best book I've ever read. All time favorite. The only book ever to make me both cry and laugh.

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Best Conroy ever!

I simply adore this book! Beautifully rich plot with gorgeous imagery. I feel in love with the family and wanted the book to never end. Must read!

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Excellent

The reader can feel every emotion in this story.
And Marosz is an outstanding narrator.

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Sad

I read this book because it's my father's favorite book. It is a very real life book with a lot of tragedy. Overall it's a good story and it's very well written. However, if you're looking for an uplifting book... this isn't it.

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Riveting story

I loved every minute of this story. Pat Conroy never disappoints. Almost sad to see it end.

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Beach Music review

A stunning metaphorically driven story enhanced by quality narration. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of themes, which intrigued my interest and connected the stories within, adding surprises along the way.

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Fabulous!

Pat Conroy makes words seem like music. Purely wonderful in every way. Loved this book!

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