The Secret Life of Luke Livingstone

By: Charity Norman

Narrated by: Gordon Griffin, Maggie Mash, Various

Luke Livingstone is a respected solicitor, a father and grandfather, a pillar of the community. Yet Luke is struggling with an unbearable secret, and it's threatening to destroy him.

All his life Luke has hidden the truth about himself and his identity. It's a truth so fundamental that it will shatter his family and leave him outcast. But to continue living, he must become the person - the woman - he knows himself to be, whatever the cost.

©2015 Charity Norman (P)2015 W F Howes Ltd

Critic reviews

"New Zealand-based author Charity Norman has the...clever knack of taking an issue and examining it from all angles, to see the effect it has on everyone involved." ( New Zealand Herald)

A book to expand knowledge and genuine compassion

Whilst 'The Secret Life of Luke Livingston' is certainly an education, do not expect an ideologically focused, social justice narrative from this book. It expands upon, compellingly, the experience of transgender people from all political and social backgrounds, and therefore reads as a apolitical, with no ideological agenda besides a genuine, open minded, human side of the topic from all points of view.

A superb resource and diversion for anyone who wants to expand their capacity for compassion. Extremely well researched, as always with Charity Norman's books. At first the narration came across as overacted, but I really warmed to it as the story went on and the narrators fell into the role. The use of two narrators is quite effective.

Would thoroughly recommend from start to finish. It does not take very much research to uncover the deep realism of the story and the commonality of the experiences of Lucia and Chloe to countless others across the world and at all levels of society.

The term 'Lego Talk' appears towards the end of the book. I don't know if Charity Norman knows she may have referenced the online Gaming content creators, Yogscast Sips and Sjin, who coined the term 'Lego Talk' in SipsCo episode 14. The unintentional mashup of genres is an entertaining easter egg for the Venn intersection of people who are fans of:
A. Intelligently written human centered audio books on deeply confronting facets of life, family and relationships, and
B. Long running Minecraft lets-play series featuring softcore role play and satire of corporate culture and environmentalism.

The use of the term leads one to question if Charity Norman secretly leads a double life. Perhaps she hides a shameful secret. That, in a concealed compartment in her day bag, she keeps a Laptop, Logitech G935 wireless gaming headset, and her Alter Ego - a level 100 paladin in World of Warcraft named Kolath Blood Bringer.

One has to wonder.