Audiobook Review - Walking with Ghosts: A memoir - Gabriel Byrne
What’s it about?
‘Walking with ghosts’ is Gabriel Byrne’s memoir. From his early childhood on the outskirts of Dublin to a brief flirtation with the priesthood, and later a life in theatre and film, the award winning actor’s account is honest and reflective, as well as funny and lyrical. This is an evocative and moving memoir.
‘I begin to apply my makeup. My mask. Our tragedy, O'Neill said, is that we are haunted not just by the masks others wear but by the masks we wear ourselves. We all act all the time. Life makes us necessary deceivers. Except maybe when we are alone.’
My thoughts
I’ve always admired Gabriel Byrne as an actor so was happy to purchase ‘walking with ghosts’, especially as he was reading the book himself, in his mellifluous voice. He also lapses into affectionate older Dublin voices for his parents, two of the ghosts in the book, which is not a linear autobiography in the traditional sense. Another of the ghosts is that of old Ireland, not overly romanticised but lovingly remembered in his crisp, measured prose. His description of growing up in a large family in old Catholic Ireland is mixed with love and pain.
He doesn't overdo the celebrity aspect of his life, with only the occasional glimpse of Hollywood, though he does gets a stalker who sits on the wall opposite his house, knitting him an aran sweater, as she has a thing for men who look like Irish fishermen. In his early days he had a few drinks with Richard Burton and asked Laurence Olivier the time, but celebrity meetings don't really feature. He's extremely modest, and a bit of a reluctant star.
‘ I carry that day like a photograph in my heart.’
Early Days
The most interesting parts of the ‘Walking with ghosts’ to me were his early days, when he trained as a priest at a seminary for a couple of years and then tried his hand at plumbing, unsuccessfully, before falling into acting. There's a darkness there when he talks of his alcoholism and his account of his relationship with his beloved sister is very moving.
’How many times have I returned in my dreams to this hill. It is always summer as I look out over the gold and green fields, ditches foaming with hawthorn and lilac, river glinting under the sun like a blade. When I was young, I found sanctuary here and the memory of it deep in my soul ever after has brought me comfort. Once I believed it would never change, but that was before I came to know that all things must. It’s a car park now, a sightseers panorama.’
Recommendation
At times funny, often sad, Gabriel Byrne writes with a wonderful lyricism and poetic style, Honest and humble, I found this to be a thoughful, superbly written memoir, by not only a gifted actor, but a born storyteller. Definitely recommending ‘walking with ghosts’, even more so as an audiobook.
Audiobook review - Walking with ghosts by Gabriel Byrne
208 pages, January 12, 2021 by Grove Press
6hrs 56 minutes