The Push

A GMA Book Club Pick (A Novel)

By: Ashley Audrain

Narrated by: Marin Ireland

A Good Morning America Book Club Pick | A New York Times best seller!

"Utterly addictive." (Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train)

"Hooks you from the very first page and will have you racing to get to the end." (Good Morning America)

A tense, pause-resisting psychological drama about the making and breaking of a family - and a woman whose experience of motherhood is nothing at all what she hoped for - and everything she feared

Blythe Connor is determined that she will be the warm, comforting mother to her new baby Violet that she herself never had.

But in the thick of motherhood's exhausting early days, Blythe becomes convinced that something is wrong with her daughter - she doesn't behave like most children do.

Or is it all in Blythe's head? Her husband, Fox, says she's imagining things. The more Fox dismisses her fears, the more Blythe begins to question her own sanity, and the more we begin to question what Blythe is telling us about her life as well.

Then their son Sam is born - and with him, Blythe has the blissful connection she'd always imagined with her child. Even Violet seems to love her little brother. But when life as they know it is changed in an instant, the devastating fall-out forces Blythe to face the truth.

The Push is a tour de force you will listen in a sitting, an utterly immersive novel that will challenge everything you think you know about motherhood, about what we owe our children, and what it feels like when women are not believed.

©2021 Ashley Audrain (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Starkly original and compulsively readable, Ashley Audrain's THE PUSH is a deep dive into the darkest nooks and crannies of motherhood. Raw, visceral, and often disturbing, this is an intense psychological drama that will be embraced by serious book clubs and fans of Lionel Shriver's We Need to Talk about Kevin." (Kristin Hannah, number one New York Times best-selling author)

"THE PUSH was a poetic, propulsive read that set my nerves jangling in both horror and recognition. I read it in one sitting and it stayed with me for days afterwards. Not to be missed." (Lisa Jewell, number one New York Times best-selling author of Then She Was Gone)

“With its riveting prose and deep convictions, Ashley Audrain’s THE PUSH had me in its clutches from the first page. Audrain’s astute portrayal of motherhood was unsettling in its insights, yet highly entertaining on the page. Complex, nuanced, and unflinching, I inhaled this debut in one sitting." (Karma Brown, best-selling author of Recipe for a Perfect Wife)

Insightful and harrowing glimpse into motherhood.

As a mother, I could relate to some of the things Ashley Audrain writes about, the things no one tells you about. But the heartbreak of having a child who is not loving or capable of receiving love, luckily that is foreign to me. I appreciate the honesty Audrain writes with, I didn’t want to stop listening. The narrator, Marin Ireland, was excellent. She brought each character to life and paced the author’s words perfectly. I enjoyed this book and recommend it, definitely. It’s not uplifting but it’s very, very good.

WARNING: CANCEL EVERYTHING PRIOR TO STARTING

I started this audible just as my husband and I started a very long car ride. I was about to switch to my ear pods, and my husband said, "No, leave it on the speakers." That was odd. We have very different tastes. Even stranger, before the long drive home, he said, "Start the book." We got home very late, but I just couldn't stop listening. I was up until 4 a.m. My husband made me fill him in, and we started to listen again around 10 a.m.
We've been listening all day and just finished. In 25 years of marriage, we've never agreed on any book until now. The Push is 5 stars in every category. My husband said within just a few minutes he was hooked, as I was. We both agree this was exceptional.

Awesome!!

Wow! This author told a great story! Narrator nailed it! I was engaged from the first few minutes until the final twist as the book ended. Emotionally it was a bit of a roller coaster ride, my heart was fully invested - and even as I write this review I still feel the tension, loss, incredible relief and am looking for her next book!!!!

Tan Addicting Thriller

This was an awesome story. I listened to it in two days because I couldn’t wait to see what happened. Half the time I found myself hating Violet, and the other half feeling bad for her.

Phenomenal on all levels

If only all books were this good and this well-acted/read. I was in the mind of Blythe, feeling her feelings, living her life. Loved it!

Good but you have to really listen

It was hard to follow at first so you really have to listen. I had to restart it but once I did it was an excellent book.

Excellent!

The story is fascinating, and it is well-narrated. Having had some experience with a sociopath, I can assure you of the realistic way these characters are portrayed. I hope to read more from Ashley Audrain!

Summary

This book takes you to a dark pkace at times but it is a good read.

Remarkably Written

Such an incredible story. The subject is a bit difficult to listen to at times but at the same time, impossible to put down. Between the writing and the narration, you become the main character. The emotions are so intense that you feel them as if it's you who's struggling through them. If I could give it 10 stars I would. =)

Wow incredible

I couldn't stop listening
What an ending 👏.
I was speechless and teary. A thriller, sad, intimate, raw.