Audiobook Review: The Testament of Mary by Colm Toibin

In The Testament of Mary (3 hours, 7 minutes; narrated by Meryl Streep), author Colm Toibin gives voice to Mary, mother of Jesus. Now elderly, Mary remembers the crucifixion of her Son and retells it in grim detail. She also provides her perspective on his followers - and it is not an exalted view. In much the same way, she is cynical about her Son's death; she does not share his view that He will rise again and questions whether His violent death was "worth it". Her bitter, resigned tone is in stark contrast to the portrait painted of her in Bible as a long-suffering but gracious martyr who sacrificed her only Son for the greater good of humanity.

In this novella, Mary is a grieving mother, mourning the loss of her only Son. With mourning, comes anger - anger at those that killed him, at herself for not doing enough for him on his path to crucifixion and anger at his zealous followers and what she sees as their celebration of his death. To them, he was a leader of a movement and he has left a legacy they must carry on by telling his stories in Gospels and starting the Church. To Mary, however, he was her son - completely human, cruelly executed and his death is nothing to be celebrated. His supposed legacy does not bring her comfort. Rather, she is suspicious of His disciples, questions their motives and finds their efforts to care for her cloying and overbearing.

My Thoughts
This book fascinated me not only because it provided a provocative view so contrary to everything I learned in Catholic school but also because the author executes the narrative with such artistry. In typical Toibin style, the language is spare but beautiful. The spare narrative only emphasizes the raw grief experienced by Mary and brings that to life. Mary in this tale is, first and foremost, human. She experiences grief you would expect from any mother but it is still shocking as it runs counter to all we have been told about the martyr Mary who gave up her only Son to save the world. Even though the events of the story - walking to the cross, His death, and the discovery of the empty tomb on the third day are well known by those familiar with the New Testament, this novella is gripping because we hear it from the perspective of someone who cannot celebrate the miracle but rather mourns her Son and questions how there can be any value in his cruel death.

The audiobook is narrated by Meryl Streep and her performance is exemplary. I felt as if I was sitting in a theater listening to a Broadway performance.  She imbues each line with such emotion that I actually had a heavy heart listening in places as Meryl as Mary describes her overwhelming grief. As beautiful as Toibin's written words are, I think they were made all the better by Streep's performance.  Highly recommend this provocative but beautiful novella.

Audiobook Review: The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett

The Uncommon Reader (read by author; 2 hrs, 27 mins) by Alan Bennett presents a fictional Queen of England who has recently discovered the joy of reading. Having always been a "doer" with a tremendous sense of duty, Her Majesty viewed reading as passive, much like spectating, and therefore did very little of it. When her Corgis get into a mobile library that has pulled up to the Palace grounds, the Queen selects a book out of courtesy. She soon finds herself transported by reading and shirking her duties to just sit and read.

 Her staff are initially perplexed and then troubled by her reading. Their concerns range from the impact of the reading on the Queen's ability to maintain her schedule to the fact that her need to share what she is reading exposes the fact that she has preferences. The Monarch should take an interest but not be interested in a particular topic; in this way none of her subjects feel excluded. Her equerries and even the Prime Minister are worried about the Queen's state of mind when she asks if she should read from a book as part of her Christmas message. They begin to intervene in unusual ways to get between the Queen and her books. As dedicated readers know, however, that is difficult to do.

  My Thoughts
When I reviewed Mrs. Queen Takes the Train last year , many people commented on that post recommending The Uncommon Reader. The premises are similar - a fictional Queen takes on an everyday activity and reveals a little of her own frailty and vulnerability in the process. When the Queen first started visiting the mobile library, she was not unlike any reluctant reader - skeptical about reading with relatively narrow tastes. Norman, who also visits the mobile library, runs through a number of potential book recommendations before he lands on one that will sufficiently interest the Queen and not squelch her budding taste for reading. She quickly becomes absorbed in the joys of reading and is soon making recommendations herself to anyone that would listen. There is a tragic element to the story as the Queen is portrayed as largely alone and often on the outside of things looking in.

This audiobook was such a pleasure - how can you not love a book which is essentially an ode to reading and the love of all things literary? The book is read by the author and each line is delivered with theatrical precision  - I especially enjoyed the witty lines and laughed out loud (while walking down the street) many times. This whimsical tale which also offers keen observations about the joy and value of reading is a must listen (or must read!) and would make a great gift for any reader.