How to Build a Boat
AS SEEN ON BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS
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How to Build a Boat
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Narrated by:
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Ciaran O'Brien
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By:
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Elaine Feeney
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2023.
A deeply moving novel about a boy and his dream, from the prize-winning author of As You Were
Jamie O'Neill loves the colour red. He also loves tall trees, patterns, rain that comes with wind, the curvature of many objects, books with dust jackets, cats, rivers and Edgar Allan Poe. At age 13 there are two things he especially wants in life: to build a Perpetual Motion Machine, and to connect with his mother Noelle, who died when he was born. In his mind these things are intimately linked. And at his new school, where all else is disorientating and overwhelming, he finds two people who might just be able to help him.
How to Build a Boat is the story of how one boy and his mission transforms the lives of his teachers, Tess and Tadhg, and brings together a community. Written with tenderness and verve, it's about love, family and connection, the power of imagination, and how our greatest adventures never happen alone.
Critic Reviews
"One of those rare books that leaves you feeling less lonely. An uplifting tale of community, healing and the small connections that can change a life. A gorgeous gift of a novel, hopeful and full of humanity." (Douglas Stuart, Booker Prize winning author of Shuggie Bain)
"A heart-stopping read and a stunning, resonant exploration of a community, a motherless boy and living an authentic life." (Sinéad Gleeson)
"What a gorgeous book. Unsentimental but generous, sharp as a teacher's side-eye and bursting with soul." (Lisa McInerney)
What listeners say about How to Build a Boat
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
- Anonymous User
- 03-10-2023
Really interesting book and really well read. Highly recommend.
I loved this book, so well written and captures diversity so well, very topical.
The narrator is excellent too.
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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
- AC
- 02-10-2023
Beautiful, hopeful novel
Jamie is thirteen, on the spectrum, and life is just tough for him in high school. He is smart, quirky and is obsessed with creating a Perpetual Motion Machine to connect with his dead mother. Tess and Tadgh are two teachers with problems of their own. But they are kind. They bond with Jamie. And they build a boat together.
Irish writer Elaine Feeney is also a poet and it shows. Her portrayal of Jamie is sensitive and skillful - he is often funny and delightfully original, so we see him as much more than just a boy with a disorder, but as a whole person.
“How to Build A Boat” is that rarest of things - a hopeful book. Parts of it made me laugh, and it moved me deeply. The epilogue was so beautifully written I had to listen to it twice, just to hear it again.
What a marvel.
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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
- Anonymous User
- 11-02-2024
Incredible narration & writing
Loved the portrayal of Jamie as an autistic teenager genius and of the people around him and how they were with him, but also the beautiful love story between Tess and Taig (?spelling!). Excellent narration and beautiful writing. Highly recommend this book.
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