Listen to a sample
Unspeakable
- Author
- Gwen Adshead
- Narrator
- Gwen Adshead, Julia Samuel
- Publisher
- Faber & Faber
- Publish Date
- 24 February 2026
- Run Time
- 12 hours 34 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Rating
- 5.0 (1 review)
Not available in your country
We don't have the rights to sell this audiobook where you are. If it's already in your library you can still listen to it in My Books.
What to expect
'Pays tribute to our capacity to remake meaning and identity from experiences'
Times Literary Supplement
'A wise, deep, nuanced and profoundly moving book' Siri Hustvedt
'Thoughtful, important and a reminder that hope belongs to everyone' Christie Watson
'Extraordinarily powerful . . . it's indelibly stamped on my mind' Rachel Clarke
The
Sunday Times bestselling authors of
The Devil You Know return with a
life-affirming book, taking us into the consulting room with Dr Gwen Adshead to witness her work with patients and discover how we heal after trauma.
Unspeakable is a testament to human resilience and the power of therapy.
The pioneering psychiatrist and psychotherapist Dr Gwen Adshead works with patients struggling in the wake of a range of distressing and painful life events. Drawn from over thirty years of clinical practice,
Unspeakable illuminates how language - and silence - can dramatically affect the quality of our recovery after disaster. Whether we're suffering from a sudden bereavement or intergenerational trauma, assault or abuse, sometimes the hardest words to say out loud are the very ones to set us free. With Adshead's assistance and extraordinary insight, these courageous people discover new ways of viewing their experiences and moving forward in their lives.
In a world of quick fixes, immediate heated responses and lazily applied labels,
Unspeakable urges nuance, expertise and compassion. It charts the transformation of patient identities, hearts and minds through the power of language, and makes a compelling case for hope.
User Reviews
Book 5.0
Narration 5.0
-
5.0 5.0
A beautifully written and narrated book that wonderfully draws you into each person's story with great compassion. It makes you realise that everyone has a story that has brought them to today and that we have no idea about that story until we listen respectfully and encouragingly and give them a safe space to tell it. This is a profound book that changes how you see other people. I wholeheartedly recommend it.
David Griffiths 2026-05-07
Details
- Author
- Gwen Adshead
- Narrator
- Gwen Adshead, Julia Samuel
- Duration
- 12 hours 34 minutes
- Release Date
- 24 February 2026
- ISBN
- 9780571394920
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Faber & Faber
- Genre
- Trauma and shock, Popular psychology
- Rating
- 5.0(1 review)
- Narration
- 5.0(1 review)
Synopsis
'Pays tribute to our capacity to remake meaning and identity from experiences' Times Literary Supplement 'A wise, deep, nuanced and profoundly moving book' Siri Hustvedt 'Thoughtful, important and a reminder that hope belongs to everyone' Christie Watson 'Extraordinarily powerful . . . it's indelibly stamped on my mind' Rachel Clarke The Sunday Times bestselling authors of The Devil You Know return with a life-affirming book, taking us into the consulting room with Dr Gwen Adshead to witness her work with patients and discover how we heal after trauma. Unspeakable is a testament to human resilience and the power of therapy. The pioneering psychiatrist and psychotherapist Dr Gwen Adshead works with patients struggling in the wake of a range of distressing and painful life events. Drawn from over thirty years of clinical practice, Unspeakable illuminates how language - and silence - can dramatically affect the quality of our recovery after disaster. Whether we're suffering from a sudden bereavement or intergenerational trauma, assault or abuse, sometimes the hardest words to say out loud are the very ones to set us free. With Adshead's assistance and extraordinary insight, these courageous people discover new ways of viewing their experiences and moving forward in their lives. In a world of quick fixes, immediate heated responses and lazily applied labels, Unspeakable urges nuance, expertise and compassion. It charts the transformation of patient identities, hearts and minds through the power of language, and makes a compelling case for hope.
About xigxag
xigxag is an independent, UK-based audiobook platform and the UK's only B Corp certified audiobook company. We offer nearly 150,000 audiobooks, all with professional human narration. No AI-generated voices. xigxag is rated an Ethical Consumer Best Buy for audiobooks and a top-rated ethical bookshop.
There is no subscription. You buy the audiobooks you want, you own them permanently, and prices start at $13.95. The more you listen over the year, the less you pay per book, and there is always a selection in Listen for Less from $7.95. You can also send audiobooks as gifts using our audiobook gift cards or in-app gifting.
Every audiobook on xigxag has honest reviews covering both the book and the narration, and our community features make it easy to share what you are listening to, discover what others recommend, and find your next listen.
Download or stream on iOS, Android, or in your browser. Browse the full catalogue at xigxag.co.uk.