A Perfectly Good Man cover art

A Perfectly Good Man

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

A Perfectly Good Man

By: Patrick Gale
Narrated by: Patrick Gale
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Devastatingly moving and full of psychological insight, A PERFECTLY GOOD MAN is a warm, humane Cornish novel from the bestselling author of A PLACE CALLED WINTER

On a clear, crisp summer's day in Cornwall, a young man carefully prepares to take his own life, and asks family friend, Barnaby Johnson, to pray with him. Barnaby - priest, husband and father - has always tried to do good, though life hasn't always been rosy. Lenny's request poses problems, not just for Barnaby, but for his wife and family, and the wider community, as the secrets of the past push themselves forcefully into the present for all to see.

©2012 Patrick Gale (P)2018 Headline Publishing Group Ltd Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Marriage

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Mother's Boy cover art
Love and Other Secrets cover art
The Four Last Things cover art
Love Song cover art
Another Day Gone cover art
The Dandelion Years cover art
The Wildflower Path cover art
Paradise Postponed cover art
The Song of the Skylark cover art

Critic reviews

"A convincing, moving account of man's struggle with faith, marriage and morality." (Sunday Times)

All stars
Most relevant  
This is my favourite of Patrick Gale's books, a tender and engaging exploration of what goodness might look like. I wish it was read by an actor though. I would welcome more variety in tone and character. Gale does not manage to differentiate well and loses accents as speeches progress. He's a fantastic writer though!

Thought provoking and engaging

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Patrick Gale can write a good book, the plot and topics discussed were interesting but I was totally put off by his narration. He is truly awful at accents and so wish he hadn't tried at all. It made any of the conversations in the book a bit toe-curling. Which I found annoying as I think with another narrator, I would have enjoyed the book more.

I am sad that he seems to be narrating pretty much all of the books he has written which probably means I won't buy any more of his titles, to be honest! Sorry Patrick, stick to the writing.

Good story, bad narrator!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The story weaves in and out of Father Barnaby's life , I loved how it went back and forth in time instead of being linear. Evocative descriptions of Cornish settings. It reminded me to accept and appreciate differences and not put too much value in stuff. Thoroughly enjoyed all the characters but especially Mr Hewitt.

sad but heart warming story ...

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. An excellent story which has major characters from an earlier book playing minor roles.
However, I felt that the final chapter was weak. A poor ending to a beautifully structured story.
There has been criticism of Patrick Gale reading his own books. I disagree with this. He has a warm and compelling voice, and after hearing him read several books, I welcome him like an old friend.

A good story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A really good listen and a thought provoking book. Patrick Gale has an eye for details that bring his characters and stories alive.

Excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
...full of warmth for his characters and a slow but burning plot - more of a warm fireplace than a firework but well
worth the time it takes.

A charmingly tangled tale...

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.