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Martin Sixsmith
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Philomena: The True Story Of A Mother And The Son She Had To Give Away Paperback – January 1, 2013

by Martin Sixsmith (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 10,863 ratings
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Philomena by Martin Sixsmith, isbn 9781447245223
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  1. Print length
    452 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Pan Books
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2013
  5. Dimensions
    5.12 x 1.16 x 7.76 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1447245229
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1447245223
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pan Books; Film tie-in ed edition (January 1, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 452 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1447245229
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1447245223
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.12 x 1.16 x 7.76 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 10,863 ratings

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Martin Sixsmith

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4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
10,863 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Shevanthi Perera
5.0 out of 5 stars A truly moving story
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2014
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A heart wrenching story about a mother's love and her quest to find the child she was forced to give up. The movie does not go into a lot of details as the book does. The book is more about the son, while the movie was about the mother. I found the book well-written and it is a must read to comprehend the cruelty and the extent to where the Catholic Church went to exploit its own young mothers in their own backyard for pounds, shillings and pence!!

Although we need to take into account the context and the time at which these events unfolded due the secrecy surrounding the forced adoption, yet, in my view, the Catholic Church and the nuns deserve no excuse for the harshness, abuse, evil, merciless inhumanity they poured daily into the lives of these young mothers. One wonders as to what Christian biblical teachings they were trying to espouse on these young minds. The extent these nuns went to keep the information from Philomena and her son were so cruel and heartbreaking. In a religious institution, where was the compassion and kindness? The difficult journey Michael and Mary had to endure, feeling unloved by their father all their lives, were truly devastating - a point that the church failed to do background checks on the families before the adoptions proceeded.

The unkindness of the nuns in not acceding to Michael's request to find his mother led him to blame himself for all the losses he had suffered in the past and the only way out was to find his mother, and had this taken place, would have unlocked the sorrow, torment and pain that engulfed him a good part of his life. Finding his mother was the key - that could have made a huge difference in his life.

Perhaps, it was a comfort for Michael to finally know before his death the truth that transpired in the abbey for the young mothers and that his mother after all never abandoned him.

The book liked the movie really touched me, left me spell bound and unable to comprehend the evilness, abuse and power the church embarked that era. Finally, the poignant and touching finale is the story of a mother and son's desperate attempt to find each other - the "power of their love" and the willingness to humbly forgive the wrongs by Philomena which are the powerful lessons that I take from this true story.
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Foster Corbin
4.0 out of 5 stars "It's the greatest regret I'll have. . . not finding my mom."*
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2014
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I read this book after seeing the deeply disturbing film "Philomena" recently. If possible, Martin Sixsmith`s story from which the movie was made is even more unsettling. Kyle Smith in his review in the "New York Post" blasts the film for being an attack on both the Catholic Church and the Republican Party. I would invite him to read the book since the director barely touches on the Republican Party in the movie. Not so in Mr. Sixsmith`s account. The book is at least 80% the story of Anthony Lee who became Michael Hess when he was adopted by the family in the United States from the Catholic convent in Ireland, one of the many examples of babies being literally sold to families seeking children. (The book originally was entitled THE LOST CHILD OF PHILOMENA LEE, certainly a more accurate title than the misleading title PHILOMENA. I presume the change was made for marketing reasons, that is, to sell more books. To call this book PHILOMENA is a little like Shakespeare naming his play GERTRUDE rather than HAMLET.)

The book fleshes out Michael Hess's life from his birth at the convent at Sean Ross Abbey, his adoption by the Hesses of St. Louis, Missouri, his childhood in the Midwest, to his rise as a prominent attorney in the Republican National Committee., his life-long longing for his mother, and-- sadly-- to his early death from AIDS. A brilliant lawyer, he was responsible for much of the work on political redistricting that allowed the Republicans to take the House in 1994 for the first time-- I believe-- in 40 years. He had both access to Presidents Reagan and Bush and became a walker, along with other gay men in high positions in the Republican Party, for Nancy Reagan and her friends. (For those unfamiliar with the term, walkers are gay men who escort prominent women to events so that their husbands don't have to; think Truman Capote on a good day.)

Michael had everything going for him but harbored a deep secret. He was a closeted gay man in a fiercely anti-gay Republican administration. His story sounds so much like so many gay men of his and my generation who had successful careers and lived two separate lives. He inhabited a transparent closet that no one talked about. Apparently practically everyone who knew him professionally was aware of his sexual orientation. When he died of AIDS in 1995, Nancy Reagan sent a note of condolence to his gay partner.

Michael Hess's life was fraught with many twists of fate. For instance, he was adopted by the Hesses although they originally were seeking a daughter. He and another child named Mary were best playmates in the convent so Marge Hess made the decision, along with her husband, not to separate the two youngsters. Michael was three when he was taken from Philomena who, along with the other unwed mothers, was treated pretty much as a slave because of her "sins." Particularly unpleasant is learning that the nuns wanted all the details about how these young girls became pregnant. I believe we call that living vicariously; don't we? It was another twist of fate with help from uncooperative sisters at the convent that both Michael and Philomena visited the convent only weeks apart, each seeking unsuccessfully information about the other. (Sister Hildegarde, who brokered the adoption in the first place was tight-lipped some fifty years later but did honor Michael's request to be buried at the convent-- if he gave a sizeable donation-- since he had always felt his home was Ireland.) Because Michael was buried at Sean Ross Abbey, Philomena saw his gravestone and noticed that his date of birth was the same as her long-lost child. With the help of Mr. Sixsmith, she was able to find out the truth about what happened to him. A final twist of fate: it would appear that Michael was given a placebo in a double-blind study with the drug cocktails that in all likelihood would have saved his life.

I find it sad beyond measure that Michael Hesse apparently made a Faustian pact with the Republican Party since it seems that the Reagans and their circle cared not a whit about his sexual orientation. They were interested only in pacifying the Jerry Falwells and Pat Robertsons of the GOP. But who is to say what I would have done, had I been in Michael's position.

I had the same problem with Mr. Sixsmith's narrative that I have too often with these sorts of books. He makes what I would call great leaps, telling the reader what Michael was thinking, and arriving at conclusions impossible to know for certain since he never interviewed the subject of his book. Of course he had access to Philomena Lee, Michael's sister Mary, his partner and friends in Washington, but we have to take some of what he says on faith. He does say in his Prologue the following: "Everything that follows is true, or reconstructed to the best of my ability. . . Gaps have been filled, characters extrapolated and incidents surmised." I rest my case.

*Comment that Michael Hess made when his sister Mary visited him not long before his death.
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gege
5.0 out of 5 stars SUPER
Reviewed in France on March 27, 2023
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SUPER
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Ms. J. Carpenter
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely absorbing!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 29, 2017
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I thought when I read this book that it would be just like the film, but it is so, so much more. It starts at the Irish Magdalene laundry where these poor young women were kept as prisoners, doing virtual hard labour as their penance for being "sinners". Giving birth to their beloved babies under the most viciously nasty conditions, beaten by these evil women who profess to be Christian. Then after having their adored babies for three years, having them ripped away and sold to Americans, with no checks done on the families that they were sold to. Make no mistake these were stolen babies, stolen and sold by the allegedly pious Catholic Church which, at this point in time, we now all know have many things to answer for. They terrorised these young women, so they felt unable to tell anyone what had happened, and when the children and mothers came knocking at their door lied through their teeth, compounding the evils already committed. I imagine that most of these bitter and twisted women have gone straight to hell, if that is what you believe in. The rest of the book, unlike the film, is the absorbing telling of the somewhat tortured life of Anthony Lee/Michael Hess. The torments of thinking your mother abandoned you, and how it affects your psyche and, therefore, the rest of your life.
It is, strangely, a book in which Philomena has a very small role, which is the surprise compared to the film, which was almost solely based on her. It is a terrific, ultimately very sad read, but don't let that put you off. Read it, you won't regret it.
Martin Sixsmith is a brilliant writer who constantly holds your attention, well done Martin! It would have been good to have had some photographs in the kindle version which, I strongly suspect, were in the paper copy..
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Lulude Junqueira d'Avila
5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente!
Reviewed in Brazil on March 5, 2016
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Excelente livro e muito comovente, principalmente em se tratando de história verídica.
A garra e coragem da protagonista prende o leitor desde o primeiro instante!
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Jeanine Parker
5.0 out of 5 stars I loved it.
Reviewed in Canada on December 5, 2014
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A very moving account of a young mother's loss of her child as a consequence of the judgemental attitudes and duplicity of the religious nuns that claim to be providing care. The story is told by a journalist who has reluctantly agreed to pursue the story in response to a fervent plea made by the daughter of the mother, now an elderly woman still grieving for her loss. The humour and compassion of the telling prevent the story from becoming maudlin and kept me captivated to the end. I loved it.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars muy recomendable
Reviewed in Spain on June 22, 2015
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me encanta la manera de escribir la historia, viéndola desde distintos ángulos. Al terminar el libro busqué en internet más sobre los hechos y efectivamente están allí. Es una historia triste, y deja mucho que pensar sobre la adoptación en general...
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