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The Great Shame
- And the Triumph of the Irish in the English-Speaking World
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 35 hrs and 50 mins
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The Great Shame
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Summary
Thomas Keneally, the Booker Prize-winning author of Schindler’s List, is universally praised for crafting smooth narratives from authentic historical events. With The Great Shame, he turns his insightful eye toward the Irish struggle through the 19h century. In sharp contrast to much of Europe, Ireland was a terrible place to be during the 1800s. Many of the nation’s finest people set sail for America and Canada. Others were forcibly exiled to Australia for committing crimes as minor as shoplifting. And approximately one million perished when a widespread potato fungus fueled a devastating famine. But the Irish survived—on their homeland and spanning the globe—making profound contributions to the world. Epic in scope, this account captures the humanity of these events and ultimately emerges as a message of hope and glory. Keneally, an Australian with Irish bloodties, powerfully examines many shattered lives—including those of his own relatives. Narrator John McDonough brings a spirit to this extraordinary book that will not soon be forgotten.
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What listeners say about The Great Shame
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 08-04-18
A must read
very very interesting and informative especially if like myself you are of irish heritage.. highly recomend it
3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Arend Goodheir
- 27-05-19
gook
Thanks again for all your work and what else is there to say but all is well with the world.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Terence Quinn
- 10-10-21
Essential for those who wish to understand Ireland
For those wishing to understand why the ‘Irish Famine ‘ happened and it’s consequences this book is essential reading. Kinneally is a master story teller and writer, bringing all his power to this wonderful book. I cannot recommend it enough. I loved it from beginning to end and this is an excellent reading by John McDonough.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 06-02-21
Brilliant book
If you are interested in Irish history at all you will love this book. Beautifully read in a lilting Irish.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shu
- 12-10-20
Great book - well worth the time
This is an incredible book.
The research is breath-taking, and the story-telling is brilliant. Thomas Keneally is a genius story teller.
Time-wise, it's a big commitment, but I was swept along by the real-life tales, and the lives and deaths of our (near) ancestors.
I was worried about the narrator, but in fact, John McDonough was great, and seemed to understand / empathise with the material.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr
- 06-02-19
Fascinating stories that span the globe
this is a genuinely lovely book, and it's hard to stop listening once you get started
1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Sparrow
- 01-04-18
The Poor Irish
This should be renamed the poor Irish
There's two sides to any story, especially in Ireland.
This book fails to take account of that.
A better listen by far is the BBCs A History Of Ireland In 240 Episodes
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- WGrubb
- 08-04-16
First read
I am enjoying this book, especially after just finishing Immortal Irishman. I am having a problem with Shame only in that it is read by an Englishman. They should have chosen a person with the Irish brogue. The history of the English dominance of Ireland is ugly one in so many respects. Listening to a book about Hitler's Germany read by a person with a German accent would not be as effective as one read in a Jewish accent. Just one man's opinion.
18 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Thomas D. Corrigan
- 28-01-18
Wonderful history of the Irish icons of 19th C
It is hard to imagine how it could be better told that the persons and character of the Young Irelanders shaped the history of the Irish in Australia, America, and Ireland itself, as collectively they brought us into the fateful Twentieth Century. The Easter Rising, the Troubles, and the freeing of Ireland that began more than one hundred years ago are now in clearer context for this reader. Keneally’s masterful color portraits of Mitchel, O’Brien, O’Reilly, and “Saint Kevin” are only matched by the thoroughness of his research and patient exposition. It was a distinct pleasure and comprehensive education to read this book, or hear it wonderfully read on Audible. Congratulations are deserved all around.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- melkitemomma
- 05-02-21
A tour de force
This is the amazingly researched comprehensive story of the Young Ireland and Fenian transportation to Australia. Not only does it follow individual patriots for their whole lives, it explains the politics of Irish nationalism in America in the nineteenth century. The reading is steady and clear. A great contribution to Irish history and a great read!
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Aaaarrrggh
- 20-12-17
Not for me
This appears a passion project for Keneally (possibly due to success of Schindler's List?). It is an incredibly detailed book about Irishmen that ran afoul of the British Government in the 19th century. It is not really for the general public, more a specialty book. It a rambling book, in desperate need of an editor. And the guy reading it cannot pronounce Australian place names correctly (seriously... wtf...)