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  • The Heart's Invisible Furies

  • Written by: John Boyne
  • Narrated by: Stephen Hogan
  • Length: 21 hrs and 19 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (396 ratings)

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The Heart's Invisible Furies

Written by: John Boyne
Narrated by: Stephen Hogan
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Publisher's Summary

From the beloved New York Times best-selling author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, a sweeping, heartfelt saga about the course of one man's life, beginning and ending in postwar Ireland.

Cyril Avery is not a real Avery - or, at least, that's what his adoptive parents tell him. And he never will be. But if he isn't a real Avery, then who is he?

Born out of wedlock to a teenage girl cast out from her rural Irish community and adopted by a well-to-do if eccentric Dublin couple via the intervention of a hunchbacked Redemptorist nun, Cyril is adrift in the world, anchored only tenuously by his heartfelt friendship with the infinitely more glamorous and dangerous Julian Woodbead. At the mercy of fortune and coincidence, he will spend a lifetime coming to know himself and where he came from and - over his many years - will struggle to discover an identity, a home, a country, and much more.

In this, Boyne's most transcendent work to date, we are shown the story of Ireland from the 1940s to today through the eyes of one ordinary man. The Heart's Invisible Furies is a novel to make you laugh and cry while reminding us all of the redemptive power of the human spirit.

©2017 John Boyne (P)2017 Penguin Random House Canada
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: LGBTQ2S+

What the critics say

"By turns whimsical and heartbreaking, Boyne's sprawling novel treads Dickensian territory across seven decades of Irish history, ending with a redemption for both a country and a native son." (People)

"Bleak, bittersweet, and Irish to the bone...explore[s] the relationship between Catholicism and patriarchy in midcentury Ireland and beyond." (O, The Oprah Magazine)

What listeners say about The Heart's Invisible Furies

Average Customer Ratings
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my favourite listen so far

loved it. The narration was excellent and the story line very touching and hit close to home for me. Very believable

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Worth the 20 hours

I purchased this title based on the reviews only and it did not disappoint. I found myself smiling as I listened, as the humour is subtle and witty. It is a full circle book, that leaves you satisfied at the end. I find myself missing the characters now that I am finished listening to it. They were a part of my daily commute to work! Narration was amazing, which earns it 5 stars.

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deserves 6 stars!!

OMG what an amazing book (not to mention amazing performance). its been a while since I've read a book that has moved me so much. This is a gem. Don't hesitate to spend a credit on it. You'll laugh out loud and maybe even she'd a sentimental tear or two. Am so glad I read this.

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5 Stars

Absolutely loved this book. It had me laughing constantly. The narrator was phenomenal. 5 stars.

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Great epic tale

I truly enjoyed this book. Heartwarming and funny with an outstanding performance by Stephan Hogan. His different voices for the characters were so great, particularly for Mary Margret lol “that’s not my standard at all”

Highly recommend

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Great read!

This was a very engaging story! Well written and narrated! When I started the book, I was a bit concerned about how it would be to listen to a 21 hour story, but I was sorry when it ended. I would highly recommend this book.

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a must read

loved it! made me angry, made me laugh, made me cry
highly recommend, a real eye opener about what Ireland may have been like... not only them of course, all over

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Best Audio book

This was honestly an amazing book. I took the word of someone else’s review and they weren’t wrong. This was a really good story

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Easy listening

The melodic narration was easy to listen to.
Following this man from childhood to adulthood, his experiences encounters shaping him and easy to visualize scenes made this very enjoyable and easy to listen to for long periods of time anticipating the next challenge for him

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    4 out of 5 stars
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audio quality POOR

The voices had wide variations of volume. Listening was a balance between too low to hear and too loud for comfort. This occured using ear buds & 2 different speakers.

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