The Boyhood of Cain, Michael Amherst
The Boyhood of Cain, Michael Amherst
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The Boyhood of Cain

Author: Michael Amherst

Narrator: Jot Davies

Unabridged: 5 hr

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 02/25/2025

Categories: Fiction, Lgbtq+, Family Life


Synopsis

A searing novel of love and betrayal as a young boy comes of age in the heart of England, from an exquisite new voice.

In the shadow of an ancient abbey nestled between rivers, Daniel is growing up. He is highly intelligent but little understood by his parents, and a secret passion burns inside him for love and recognition. When his father loses his job as the headmaster of the local school, his family stumbles into a rural life for which they are ill-prepared. Daniel’s sole solace is the arrival of Philip, a new boy at school, whom he worships with a confused intensity. Before long, both boys fall under the spell of a charismatic art teacher, setting Daniel on a perilous course that could lead to the betrayal of all he loves. 

Tender, brutal, and enthralling, The Boyhood of Cain is a remarkable portrait of a young boy caught between mother and father, self and desire, and obedience and freedom. It evokes the passions and private wounds of youth, and plumbs the turning points in our lives that make us who we are.

About The Author

Michael Amherst is the author of Go the Way Your Blood Beats: On Truth, Bisexuality & Desire, which won the 2019 Stonewall Book Award for nonfiction. He is the winner of the 2020 Hubert Butler Essay Prize, and his short fiction has been longlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award. His journalism and criticism have been published in The Guardian and New Statesman, among other outlets. The Boyhood of Cain is his first novel.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kate on January 25, 2025

3.5 I found this book quite difficult to engage with simply because neither Daniel nor anyone he comes into contact with is particularly likeable. At the start Daniel is a precocious snob because his father is a headmaster of a private school and he lives in a big house. He is afforded privileges tha......more

Goodreads review by em on September 22, 2024

A beautiful, slow burn book full of yearning on the cusp of adolescence. I really enjoyed the writing, it felt almost ethereal and otherworldly. The plot was slow, but the focus on Daniel and his journey from child to borderline teenage made the slow plot worthwhile. This was a gorgeous reflection o......more

Goodreads review by natalie on December 09, 2024

An awe-inducing short novel about a boy’s coming of age. I sat wrapt unable to put the book down, reading it almost entirely in a single sitting. Perfect for fans of Claire Keegan - literary fiction and storytelling at its absolute finest.......more

Goodreads review by Ben on November 06, 2024

Michael Amherst's debut novel is the story of a boy, Daniel, who is trying to understand the world and his place in it. Though the novel is short, it packs in a lot of emotional punch. There is some very fine writing here indeed, and it is accomplished and very distinct in style. There might not be......more

Goodreads review by Jess on February 04, 2025

This is one of those novels where things happen to the protagonist, rather than the protagonist being driven to do anything of consequence. Sometimes I enjoy this kind of tale, as a slice of life cosy read, but this was too bleak for me. The characters are unlikeable, and whilst the main character h......more


Quotes

"Amherst has Coetzee’s surface calmness, inner turbulence, understated emotion and muted wit...With The Boyhood of Cain, a star is born." –The Times

“Amherst’s words matter as they limn Daniel’s life in beautifully realized, psychologically acute, and nearly granular detail. [Daniel] is an unfailingly fascinating, memorable character. A reader can’t ask for anything more." –Booklist, STARRED REVIEW

“Amherst writes with a measured pace and careful attention to his youthful protagonist’s malleability as Daniel questions his sexuality and other supposed binaries of life. The result is an authentic depiction of youthful fears and confusions.” –Publishers Weekly

"Approaches this subject with skill and sensitivity... Amherst writes in a crisp fashion, eschewing unnecessary detail, which leads to a book that feels stripped down to its most essential elements... an interesting and unusual book." –John Boyne, Irish Times

“When Amherst embraces ambiguity, in the moments where Daniel must admit no answer is to be found, the novel contains the same eerie spark that makes the bildungsromans of Hermann Hesse crackle. A coming-of-adolescence novel that rigorously avoids cliche.”Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW

"A powerful, searing tale told by a boy facing the plenitude of life but hemmed in by a world so…ordinary that he can’t wait either to flee it or be drowned in it." –André Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name

"A beautiful and profound novel about a boy's coming to consciousness as his family falls apart. Utterly compelling and quietly devastating, I read this book with my heart in my mouth and could not put it down." –Mary Costello, author of The River Capture

"Told in a voice that is both bracing and embracing...Amherst delivers Danny's spellbinding story with rare sharpness, profundity and heart.” –Michael Donkor, author of Housegirl

"A gorgeous and propulsive portrait of the end of childhood...Beautifully written, with unwavering empathy and precise, perfect details, Amherst is a true talent. I loved it." –Anna Hogeland, author of The Long Answer