Wonderful heartwarming story

I thoroughly enjoyed this. It is obviouslly based on personal experience which gives it more intensity. The book is basically the story of a man and his elderly mother, who is suffering from dementia and in a care home. He encourages her to talk about the past where the memories are still intact, and so we learn about Mary's past and that of her mother Grace.

The tale touches on the issues of illegitimacy and how it was viewed in small-town Cumbria in the early 20th century; also that of ageing parents and how we cope with and react to the changes in them.

The descriptions of Carlisle, Wigton and Silloth both present and past were evocative (I live in Carlisle and so know most of the places described). I particularly liked though the way the author writes about his conflicting feelings concerning his mother (through the character of John); the many emotions of anger, impatience, guilt, tenderness and love that are involved in coping with an ageing relative and coming to terms with the loss even before they are gone.

This was beautifully and sensitively narrated.

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4 people found this helpful

A tender story that's both sad and uplifting

A son visiting his aging mother, Mary, is saddened by her advancing dementia but strives to encourage her to remember her past and her mother, Grace. The listener is taken back and forth in the family's history with revelations of prejudice, disappointments and courage. The book exposes attitudes in society in the first half of the 20th Century, particularly towards women. I felt immersed in the era that the book spans and the author's familiarity with his birthplace in Cumbria gave a great sense of where the story is set.
The two narrators give voices to the characters that bring them to life.

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13 people found this helpful

A bit of a struggle

I'm afraid I did struggle with this book. I felt that all too often the characterisation was sacrificed on the alter of erudition. I wanted to know more about the people, their feelings and emotions and motivation, rather than the learned facts. For example, at the dance I wasn't really interested in the minute details of how it had been run for years etc, but in the characters involved! and how they were feeling There is no doubt that Melvyn Bragg is an extremely learned man, and some of the facts and thoughts were interesting, but this is obviously too dry a book for me. I did by the end, though, really empathise with Mother and Son, but it took a long time to get there.

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2 people found this helpful

Moving

I found this book to be tender and affecting, both from the aspect of John dealing with Mary's progressive dementia, and the retrospective view of Grace's life. I enjoyed the setting, a part of the country with which I am acquainted , and liked the slice of social history it covered. This is the first of Melvyn Bragg's books I have read, and I feel inclined to read more. I enjoyed the two-handed narration of the book, and liked both voices.

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Tugs at the heart strings

If you could sum up Grace and Mary in three words, what would they be?

nostalgic salutary delightful

Which scene did you most enjoy?

Grace's dignity when she is shocked by the news of Alan's engagement

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, but it was nicely divided by the two narrators

Any additional comments?

It made me sad and I loved it !!!

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Poignant story beautifully narrated

Thoughtful, insightful story which chronicles the sadness of dementia in old age on Mary and her son John and also exploring the story of Grace and how her relationship with Mary was tragically affected by the narrow mindedness of the time.

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Disappointing

Although a nice enough story and fine use of language, I had hoped for more from Melvyn Bragg, especially if you compare it to his "A Time to Dance".

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2 people found this helpful

Heart breaking

so moving.
excellent narration.
highly recommended but have a tissue to hand.
firm favourite

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1 person found this helpful

Most boring book of 2014

What disappointed you about Grace and Mary?

The only thing good about this book was the word smithing. The story meanders along going nowhere with confusing jumps from the past to the ?present. It is predictable yet short on character development.

Would you ever listen to anything by Melvyn Bragg again?

Might do if the storyline seemed to merit it

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Other narrators help you recognise jumps in time by subtly altering their voices - this one didn't at all

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Disaapointed

Having read the hype and reviews was very disappointed with this. Was rambling in places and the narration left a lot to be desired as a big Melvyn Bragg fan I felt somehow cheated with this particular novel

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4 people found this helpful