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The Secret Scripture - Sebastian Barry
The Secret Scripture
by: (author)
4.67 30
The novel won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, one of the most prestigious English literature prizes and the oldest prize in the United Kingdom. The story pits two contradictory narratives against each other in an attempt to solve the mystery of a 100-year-old mental patient. That patient,... show more
The novel won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, one of the most prestigious English literature prizes and the oldest prize in the United Kingdom.

The story pits two contradictory narratives against each other in an attempt to solve the mystery of a 100-year-old mental patient. That patient, Roseanne McNulty, decides to undertake an autobiography and writes of an ill-fated childhood spent with her father, Joe Clear. A cemetery superintendent, Joe is drawn into Ireland's 1922 civil war when a group of irregulars brings a slain comrade to the cemetery and are discovered by a division of Free-Staters. Meanwhile, Roseanne's psychiatrist, Dr. Grene, investigating Roseanne's original commitment in preparation for her transfer to a new hospital, discovers through the papers of the local parish priest, Fr. Gaunt, that Roseanne's father was actually a police sergeant in the Royal Irish Constabulary. The mysteries multiply when Roseanne reveals that Fr. Gaunt annulled her marriage after glimpsing her in the company of another man; Gaunt's official charge was nymphomania, and the cumulative fallout led to a string of tragedies.
Written in captivating, lyrical prose, Barry's novel is both a sparkling literary puzzle and a stark cautionary tale of corrupted power.  
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Format: papier
ISBN: 9780670019403 (670019402)
Publisher: Viking Adult
Pages no: 304
Edition language: English
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Community Reviews
The Drift Of Things
The Drift Of Things rated it
4.0
Tragic and heartbreaking in that very Irish way of being tragic and heartbreaking. But also very tender and beautifully written in that very Irish style of tender and beautiful writing. Don't let the title fool you into thinking this is about religion. It refers to a life story being written by a ...
Manny Rayner's book reviews
Manny Rayner's book reviews rated it
5.0
A wonderful, poetic book about love and memory. Also pain, and loss, and how you can miss the most important thing in the world, even though it's right under your nose. Ireland too, of course.We're all innocent Roseanne, locked up in an asylum for decades for no reason, or because she happened to be...
The Way She Reads
The Way She Reads rated it
5.0
Neither an easy nor an fast read, this book was well worth the time it took to read. It should also make for a great discussion next Tuesday when the Reading Group gets together for their first ever book discussion. I'm looking forward to that.
Lost in the Stacks
Lost in the Stacks rated it
5.0
Beautiful. I liked this so much, I'm going to have to read all of his other books now.
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