Reviews

Grace and Mary by Melvyn Bragg

kelbi's review

5.0

I loved this book. It's very sad as it deals with dementia and the end of life, but its treated so sensitively that it is almost (almost) life-enhancing.

snoakes7001's review

5.0

Melvyn Bragg is withoutdoubt one of our most underrated novelists. Grace and Mary slowly pieces together the story of a family through a son's attempts to help his mother remember as she succumbs to Alzheimer's. It's beautifully written, poignant and touching and, as ever, the landscape is as much a part of the story as the characters.
If you've not read a Melvyn Bragg novel before, do yourself a favour and try one.

reading_on_the_road's review against another edition

1.0

Living in Cumbria and saying that you don't like Melvyn Bragg's books feels a little like heresy - but I just couldn't get on with his writing style, which felt florid and overdone to me.

hilarymak's review

5.0

Absolutely loved this book- which I wouldn't have chosen to read were it not for book group! Heartachingly sad, as John sees his mother descend into dementia. But the even greater sadness and loss is of unknown mothers and past histories, interwoven into the present. Beautifully written, characters were ordinary yet real, sympathetically drawn, and I found myself thinking about then long after finishing it. A real little gem!

reading_on_the_road's review

1.0

Living in Cumbria and saying that you don't like Melvyn Bragg's books feels a little like heresy - but I just couldn't get on with his writing style, which felt florid and overdone to me.

bookmarchitect's review

5.0

Gentle, wise and beautiful story of women, children, family life, our time, the chain of generations - about all that really matters. Listened to an Audiobook version; splendidly narrated by Sandra Duncan and Gordon Griffin.