Historical

A Terrible Kindness

A Terrible Kindness

  • Downloads：7031
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-12-06 00:51:34
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Jo Browning Wroe
  • ISBN：057136831X
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Tonight nineteen-year-old William Lavery is dressed for success， his first black-tie do。 It's the Midlands Chapter of the Institute of Embalmers Ladies' Night Dinner Dance， and William is taking Gloria in her sequined evening gown。 He can barely believe his luck。

But as the guests sip their drinks and smoke their post-dinner cigarettes a telegram delivers news of a tragedy。 An event so terrible it will shake the nation。 It is October 1966 and a landslide at a coal mine has buried a school: Aberfan。

William decides he must act， so he stands and volunteers to attend。 It will be his first job， and will be - although he's yet to know it - a choice that threatens to sacrifice his own happiness。 His work that night will force him to think about the little boy he was， and the losses he has worked so hard to bury。 But compassion can have surprising consequences， because - as William discovers - giving so much to others can sometimes help us heal ourselves。

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Reviews

Sophie ，

After a lot of DNFs lately， I was very glad that the writing of this book sucked me in right from the start。 I liked the author’s turn of phrase， and have definitely never read about embalming， nor had I ever heard of the Aberfan disaster。 Towards the end when William started reconciling with people and places， it was fairly unrealistic that he/ they went from zero to one hundred so quickly。 But that’s really the only criticism。 I will definitely look for more books by this author。

Hajer Aïssaoui ，

3。5

Simone ，

Heartbreaking and at the same time very uplifting。 Need tissues to read！

Jennifer Li ，

The story opens in October 1966 with William Lavery having the night of his life at his first black-tie event。 But as the evening unfolds， devastating news arrive of a landslide at a coal mine that has buried a school in Aberfan。 William volunteers as an embalmer and it will be a job he never forgets。 It forces him to look back at his childhood and the difficult past that he has buried and forgotten。This is an immediately moving and harrowing novel from the outset framed by the historical traged The story opens in October 1966 with William Lavery having the night of his life at his first black-tie event。 But as the evening unfolds， devastating news arrive of a landslide at a coal mine that has buried a school in Aberfan。 William volunteers as an embalmer and it will be a job he never forgets。 It forces him to look back at his childhood and the difficult past that he has buried and forgotten。This is an immediately moving and harrowing novel from the outset framed by the historical tragedy in Aberfan。 While the opening chapters are focussed on the Aberfan disaster， it is not the heart of the story as it is merely the catalyst for readers to learn more about William’s childhood and how he ends up becoming a trained embalmer （from a talented young chorister） and following his father’s family business。William is not an easy character to like as he is guarded and closed off in his emotions and he seems to carry a lot of shame based on a particular event that happened to him as a child that has a life-changing impact on him and the family and friends around him。 It’s a very emotionally powerful read， in parts reminded me of Ian McEwan’s coming-of-age novel Atonement， which looks at past trauma and how to find the compassion to forgive oneself and find a way to heal and move forward。 The main cast of characters are pivotal to William’s childhood and I love the authenticity of the relationships that exists between him and his challenging mum Evelyn who struggles with the death of William’s father， and projects her devastating grief and insecurity on William’s loving uncle Robert and his partner Howard。 I also loved Martin， William’s loyal and protective friend at the choir school。This is a powerful and heartfelt novel that will draw you in from beginning to the end。 A brilliant debut。 。。。more

Sue Le-Heup ，

Beautiful and heartbreaking book， narrated perfectly， fiction but uses a true life event which might be difficult for some

Kristy ，

I had higher expectations for this book—the story just did play out the way I thought it was going to。 It was just good。

J 。 Watkins ，

Such a lovely book。Difficult subject matter but so beautifully written。Would recommend。

June Lim ，

Historical backdrop about the devastating Landslide in Aberfan，Wales。

Dunj ，

3。5A nice book。 A bit too clean-cut for me。

Lesley ，

A moving and memorable book。

Sarah ，

The best book I've read this year and one of those where I'm sure the characters will remain with me for some time。 Not the easiest of subject matters at times but so sensitively and beautifully written。 The best book I've read this year and one of those where I'm sure the characters will remain with me for some time。 Not the easiest of subject matters at times but so sensitively and beautifully written。 。。。more

Annette Mouat ，

Fiction， but the story based on a true life event， the terrible Aberflan mining disaster， where coal slurry thundered through a Welsh school， causing many deaths。 William Lavery is just 19 and newly graduated as an undertaker， in fact he is at his graduation ceremony， when the call goes out for embalmers to travel urgently to Wales to assist at the decimated village。 William answers this call， and this is a very sad yet tender part of the story。We then learn more about William， about his family Fiction， but the story based on a true life event， the terrible Aberflan mining disaster， where coal slurry thundered through a Welsh school， causing many deaths。 William Lavery is just 19 and newly graduated as an undertaker， in fact he is at his graduation ceremony， when the call goes out for embalmers to travel urgently to Wales to assist at the decimated village。 William answers this call， and this is a very sad yet tender part of the story。We then learn more about William， about his family and the family undertaking business。 The story delves back to William's childhood where his beautiful voice gained him selection to the prestigious Cambridge choir school， and learn of the life and friendships that he had there。 Then after the Aberflan tragedy， we see how this and other events shape Williams life and how he copes， or tries to cope， while carrying many burdens on his shoulders。Very strongly character driven in which not a huge amount happens， but this is a very memorable book。 。。。more

Monika ，

A beautiful story about a beautiful but terrible kindness。 I found this book a bit uneven though， at times fascinatin - especially at the beginning， at times painfully frustrating - especially in the middle。 But I did like it and would recommend it。

Hornthesecond ，

A beautiful story wonderfully told。 I look forward to reading it again one day when I've forgotten the plot。 A beautiful story wonderfully told。 I look forward to reading it again one day when I've forgotten the plot。 。。。more

Ellie ，

A strong start but this petered out for me

Chris Chapman ，

Loved this book， beautifully written， easy to read。

Christina Young ，

Absolutely loved this book read with my book club！ Our first discussion is this evening so I’ll be interested to hear what others think。 I listened on audiobook。 The narration was flawless。 William’s struggles with relationships were the highlight of the book。 He was clearly liked and loved by those around him but he found it very hard to express his own feelings。 Aberfan features in the first couple of chapters but largely the book is about William and how his experience of Aberfan left him wit Absolutely loved this book read with my book club！ Our first discussion is this evening so I’ll be interested to hear what others think。 I listened on audiobook。 The narration was flawless。 William’s struggles with relationships were the highlight of the book。 He was clearly liked and loved by those around him but he found it very hard to express his own feelings。 Aberfan features in the first couple of chapters but largely the book is about William and how his experience of Aberfan left him with lots to process。 Beautifully written debut novel。 。。。more

Sue Ying ，

4。5 stars！ I loved this book for all the characters especially William the protagonist， how the terrible events of Aberfan shaped him。 Who ever thought a story of embalming and choir singing could be so intriguing and interesting。 The author intertwined both beautifully。

Hannah Tucker ，

4。5 but rounding up as I found it an incredibly moving read

Kaz ，

a must read。 ensure you have your emotions in check first。 it could be wrench to the heart。

Nancy ，

A solid five star debut novel。 I don’t remember where I got the recommendation for this novel but I first bought it for my mother-in-law。 While visiting her I picked it up off her already read stack and thought to add it to my towering TBR stack。 A day later I opened it and read the first few pages and I was hooked。 William， the main character， is 19 and has just graduated from the Thames College of Embalming and is joining the family business。 At a celebratory fancy dinner dance a plea is circu A solid five star debut novel。 I don’t remember where I got the recommendation for this novel but I first bought it for my mother-in-law。 While visiting her I picked it up off her already read stack and thought to add it to my towering TBR stack。 A day later I opened it and read the first few pages and I was hooked。 William， the main character， is 19 and has just graduated from the Thames College of Embalming and is joining the family business。 At a celebratory fancy dinner dance a plea is circulated requesting embalmers to volunteer to clean， embalm and assist in the identification of bodies from a disaster which buried a primary school and several homes in a wall of coal sludge。 Young William volunteers and this courageous， compassionate， selfless act impacts the direction of his life and the traumatizing events， along with childhood traumas， negatively affect his adult relationships and happiness。The novel flashes back to the time after the death of William’s father when he entered a prestigious boarding school and joined an elite choir。 He met Martin， a schoolmate， whose precocious antics and pranks got them both in trouble but ultimately solidified their friendship。 During this school period the reader also gets a view of Robert （his father’s twin） and his partner， Howard， and the complications and issues raised by a homosexual relationship ultimately causing an estrangement between William and his mother， Evelyn。 This novel sometimes plods along but that is William’s pace; methodical， determined， calm and outwardly unemotional。This novel has inspired me to research the Aberfan Coal Mining disaster as well as musical references to specific works such as Miserere。 The events， although a fictional account of a true disaster， and William will remain with me。 I hope this debut novel by an author in her 50s is only the first of many to come。 。。。more

Claire Simon ，

Excellent 1er roman

Anastasia Wilson ，

I really struggled with this， it's quite graphic at the beginning and I couldn't quite hack it。I'm sure it's a good book but not for sensitive souls I really struggled with this， it's quite graphic at the beginning and I couldn't quite hack it。I'm sure it's a good book but not for sensitive souls 。。。more

Jan Koster ，

Het vaderloze moederskindje William heeft moeite om zich aan zijn bezitterige moeder te ontworstelen。 Als hij op eigen benen staat gaat hij， op een te jonge leeftijd en te onervaren， als vrijwillige balsemer aan het werk na de ramp in Aberfan。 Hij loopt daar een trauma op dat zijn leven daarna bemoeilijkt。 Overtuigende en ontroerende debuutroman。Lees meer: bit。ly/3MkFLIv Het vaderloze moederskindje William heeft moeite om zich aan zijn bezitterige moeder te ontworstelen。 Als hij op eigen benen staat gaat hij， op een te jonge leeftijd en te onervaren， als vrijwillige balsemer aan het werk na de ramp in Aberfan。 Hij loopt daar een trauma op dat zijn leven daarna bemoeilijkt。 Overtuigende en ontroerende debuutroman。Lees meer: bit。ly/3MkFLIv 。。。more

Lois Pfeffer ，

A good story！ Took me a while to read the book yet I never lost interest。 Worthwhile read for sure。

Sandra Moore ，

A newly qualified embalmer is sent to Aberfan to work with the children's bodies。 This traumatic experience， together with an earlier painful experience， has a long lasting impact on William Lavery。 A newly qualified embalmer is sent to Aberfan to work with the children's bodies。 This traumatic experience， together with an earlier painful experience， has a long lasting impact on William Lavery。 。。。more

Louise Herr ，

Loved this book and the characters。 Good writing and nice plot

Lorraine ，

3。5starsUnfortunately I found the flashbacks a little confusing and didn’t warm to some of the characters but otherwise a well written book of Hope and love。

TANIA HOUGHTON ，

I really enjoyed this book。 Just fell in love with William right from the start。 Loved the short chapters。

Dr Janet Mary Hoskyns ，

I loved this book - the subjects and themes （Cambridge choral singing） Children growing up， Birmingham are all close to my heart。 The way they were interwoven and the confident way the author dealt with family relationships was moving and engaging。 I did not expect so much from the cover - but the way music was described and talked about was very beautiful and meaningful。 Lovely！

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=A Terrible Kindness

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=A Terrible Kindness&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,A Terrible Kindness&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0