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A Terrible Kindness

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A Terrible Kindness

By: Jo Browning Wroe
Narrated by: David Dawson
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*INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER*

*AN OBSERVER DEBUT OF 2022*

*AS FEATURED ON FRONT ROW*

When we go through something impossible, someone, or something, will help us, if we let them . . .

It is October 1966 and William Lavery is having the night of his life at his first black-tie do. But, as the evening unfolds, news hits of a landslide at a coal mine. It has buried a school: Aberfan. William decides he must act, so he stands and volunteers to attend. It will be his first job as an embalmer, and it will be one he never forgets. His work that night will force him to think about the little boy he was, and the losses he has worked so hard to forget. But compassion can have surprising consequences, because - as William discovers - giving so much to others can sometimes help us heal ourselves.

Biography: Jo Browning Wroe grew up in a crematorium in Birmingham. She has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia and is now Creative Writing Supervisor at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. Her debut novel, A Terrible Kindness, was shortlisted for the Bridport Peggy Chapman-Andrews award. She has two adult daughters and lives with her husband in Cambridge.

©2022 Jo Browning Wroe (P)2022 Faber Audio Coming of Age Genre Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Literary Fiction

Critic reviews

"It's a long time since I've read a debut novel that moved me so much." (Rachel Joyce)

"Extraordinary." (Sophie Hannah)

"A brave and tender novel." (Joanna Glen)
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Wonderfully read. Amazing characters. Sad in parts but a lovely ending. Couldn’t stop listening to it I loved it.

Excellent story loved it

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Started a little slow for me, but at some point I couldnt stop listening - beautiful story with many different angles.

Beautiful story

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Don’t let the sad topic put you off this fabulous beautiful book. It was terrific. I only wish I could read it all again for the first time

Wonderful

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The book emerges from tragedy to show a profound and thorough self discovery. Well worth the read!

Beautiful

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This is a beautifully written, deeply moving novel that lingers long after the final page. It follows William Lavery, a young, newly qualified embalmer at the very start of his adult life, and traces how a formative experience shapes him in ways that unfold quietly over time.

The book offers gentle, thoughtful insight into how difficult experiences can stay with us, influencing who we become and how we connect with others — especially when those experiences remain unspoken. It reflects on the importance of acknowledging what affects us, and the subtle ways silence can ripple into the lives of those around us.

The writing is tender, restrained, and deeply humane, allowing the emotional weight of the story to emerge naturally. One line spoken by William’s best friend, Martin, stayed with me long after I finished reading:
“Do you think anyone deserves being loved, really deserves it?”

Thought-provoking

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