Girls in their Married Bliss

By: Edna O'Brien

Narrated by: Edna O'Brien

Kate and Baba are in London, playing out the tragicomedy of their married lives to its surprisingly level-headed conclusion. Kate, feeling trapped in her grey stone house with her increasingly cold husband, tearfully looks for her dreams of romance elsewhere. And when Eugene takes terrible, implacable revenge, she naturally turns to her brazen friend Baba for help. But Baba, the bored trophy wife of builder Frank, vulgarly flashing his wealth and ignorance to the world, has her own problems without Kate drooping self-pityingly over her. And both women find unsuspected qualities in themselves as they learn to face reality.

The last book in the 'Country Girls' Trilogy, which began with 'The Country Girls' and was followed by 'Girl with Green Eyes'.

©1964 Edna O'Brien (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Devastating Final Chapter

This third and final volume of O'Brien's celebrated trilogy alternates point of view between the two "girls." It starts out with the spiky mix of rueful comedy and earned anger over the oppressive expectations for Irish women of the first volumes. It has some fantastically funny set pieces, and Baba continues to be a tremendously witty, hard-edged foil to more passive and earnest Kate. As the book progresses, things turn darker, and the epilogue is so sad and bitter, at times it's painful to listen to. I think some readers felt betrayed by the sadness of the final installment, but it exposes the reality of life for women raised in deeply Catholic countries and living in a society that keeps them in inferior roles, surrounded by men addicted to alcohol and misogyny. O'Brien's narration is riveting!

Best of Country Girls Trilogy

I have the suspicion that many people buy The Country Girls trilogy but read only the first novel. If you are a guilty non-completer of this justly famed trilogy, listening to OBrien herself read is the way to go. She is a beautiful reader of her own work, and the final novel abd epillogue are what push the whole trilogy to the calibre of greatness. By all means listen to this!

No Happy Endings

The final book in the trilogy and I have thoughts. First, you really need to read the first two books in order to enjoy this one. But second, I don't think the author was the right person to read these books. I thought perhaps it was my fault for listening at a faster than normal speed (although that's how I listen with other narrators as well) so I slowed it down but I still didn't love her narration. I heard every lip smack and intake of breath. I will say that this final book, told from the point of view of Baba, seems to match with the author's narration style better than the first two.

As for the text itself, it's pretty hilarious to read/listen to the exceptionally tame sex scenes in all three of the books and know what a scandal they created in Ireland not that long ago. But after our country girls went through so much to try to make an independent life for themselves, I found myself saddened by the final novel. I wish we could have ended with book two, which wasn't a happy ending but was still full of promise for the two young women.

Marriage is not going to easy for the girls.

They didn't seem to have a reason to get beyond the joke of life, so were absorbed in it.

A sad story but realistic reminiscences about a life in the 1950’s in England

Edna O’Brien is a magic reader giving pathos and vocal context to a sad story of life of Irish emigrants in England.