Memoir Musings: Unveiling a Path from Priesthood to Self-Discovery
Candid Memoirs and Reader Reactions
Hello there,
An early reader of my second memoir has called for Book 3: that was encouraging. They liked that it showed my thoughts and feelings and my increasing self-awareness in the six years after I took leave of absence from the Marist Fathers. They also reckoned that I had quickly caught up after my nine years of celibacy!
Embracing Authenticity: Unveiling the Personal Journey
Another person who has been in touch is listening to the audiobook of my first memoir. They said it was ‘very personal, powerful and enjoyable’ and that my reading it made it authentic and there was much to digest in it.
From Celibacy to Self-Discovery: Unravelling the Six-Year Transformation
Another early reader of my second memoir, Saved by a Woman, has told me it’s better than my first one, which was great to hear, because reviews of the first memoir were very heartening.
In My Gut, I Don’t Believe: A Dive into Review Reflections
Given the publication of my new memoir last week, it’s timely to reproduce here a compilation of reviews of In My Gut, I Don’t Believe
Critical Acclaim: Reviews That Captured the Memoirs' Essence
‘A fascinating, courageous and moving account of an individual leaving the trammels of religion for the good light of humanism—an educative story on many levels, well told.’ — Professor A.C. Grayling
‘He has opened up his soul to the world.’ — Dave McCarthy
Extremely well written, delightfully articulate and a huge accomplishment in staying true to oneself. He looks back from the vantage point of age, without re-casting things in his own reconstructed terms. Readers anywhere who struggle with the widespread demise of religion will be able to recognise their own souls in this book. Ireland and the world come alive, doubt becomes vivid; and the reader experiences an awakening of the heart.’ — Dr Nick Overduin
‘I’ve read few autobiographical works that examine family relationships, internal thought processes or human urges with the honesty displayed here. It makes for compelling reading.’ — Eamon Murphy
‘I didn’t intend to but I read this book in one sitting. It is the story of an idealistic young man who wanted to be a priest. Nine years later he quit before ordination. The phrase searingly honest is overworked but it applies here. Joe Armstrong’s vision was rooted in warmth and love but ran into the brick wall of celibacy. This is the story of a young man’s battle with himself and his superiors. Of course we read for pleasure as well as enlightenment. Sitting at home by the fire I enjoyed being escorted around my native city and its suburbs as they were in the 1980s by an observant and literate companion.’ — former Irish Times journalist Kieran Fagan
Seeking Truth: Honesty at the Core of Memoir Writing
‘The desire to be totally honest is at the core of this book.’ — Dr Eamon Maher
‘It will stir emotional memories for a generation reared in Catholic households in the 1960s and 1970s. But it’s not only a story of emancipation from the darker days of theocratic Ireland. It is a coming-of-age memoir. Armstrong’s account of his time with the Marist Fathers is searingly graphic in dealing with his struggles for obedience, belief and chastity. Volume 2, please.’ — from Tim O’Brien’s review in The Irish Times
Echoes of a Transitional Era: Navigating Faith and Freedom
‘This is a searing, no-holds-barred exposé of the author’s struggle to exit his training for the priesthood and the Catholic Church. It is honest and real and harrowing at times, but rewarding in the absolute authenticity of the story. I got involved to the extent that I was shouting at the author to get out before they destroyed him, and that testifies to the power of the narrative.’ — Dr Teresa Graham
‘An honest, brave and self-effacing account of the author’s struggle to find himself. His entanglement with religious thought structures illustrates the struggle we must all go through if we are to be truly free.’ — Dara Molloy
‘Set when priests were viewed by most Irish people as more than mere mortals, the author struggles with the same natural urges, doubts and indecisiveness as most young men do, while shackled by a vow of celibacy and guilt. His incredibly complex upbringing and relationship with his mother is tackled with a bravery and honesty that I can only describe as stunning.’ — Tony O’Donohoe
‘This is a painstaking account by the author of his journey to self-awareness through his experience of family and faith as an aspirant priest in a Dublin seminary in the 1980s. It affords the reader a rare and valuable insight into institutional religious life, it records details of an Irish society now faded into history and is an important story, earnestly, meticulously and bravely told.’ — Margaret McCann
A Call to Share: Inviting Readers into the Memoir Journey
Thank you to those who have written reviews, including those not mentioned here due to space restrictions.
The Significance of Reviews: An Author's Perspective
If you read, or have read, either of my memoirs, please rate them and do even a little review of one or both of them on Amazon or goodreads.com. Every star and review will help the books to find their place in the world.
A Humorous Note: Embracing Feedback and Moving Forward
And, as Irish comedian Maureen Potter used to say at the end of her shows at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, if you didn’t like them, ‘keep your breath to cool your porridge!’
Happy days,
Joe
