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Sister of My Heart cover art

Sister of My Heart

Written by: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
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Publisher's Summary

From the award-winning author of Mistress of Spices, the best-selling novel about the extraordinary bond between two women, and the family secrets and romantic jealousies that threaten to tear them apart.

Anju is the daughter of an upper-caste Calcutta family of distinction. Her cousin Sudha is the daughter of the black sheep of that same family. Sudha is startlingly beautiful; Anju is not. Despite those differences, since the day on which the two girls were born, the same day their fathers died - mysteriously and violently - Sudha and Anju have been sisters of the heart. Bonded in ways even their mothers cannot comprehend, the two girls grow into womanhood as if their fates as well as their hearts were merged.

But when Sudha learns a dark family secret, that connection is shattered. For the first time in their lives, the girls know what it is to feel suspicion and distrust. Urged into arranged marriages, Sudha and Anju's lives take opposite turns. Sudha becomes the dutiful daughter-in-law of a rigid small-town household. Anju goes to America with her new husband and learns to live her own life of secrets. When tragedy strikes each of them, however, they discover that despite distance and marriage, they have only each other to turn to.

Set in the two worlds of San Francisco and India, this exceptionally moving novel tells a story at once familiar and exotic, seducing listeners from the first minute with the lush prose we have come to expect from Divakaruni. Sister of My Heart is a novel destined to become as widely beloved as it is acclaimed.

©1999 Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (P)2012 Tantor

Critic Reviews

"An inspired and imaginative raconteur, Divakaruni is sure to engender comparisons with Arundhati Roy ( The God of Small Things), but Divakaruni's novel stands in its own right as a compelling read." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about Sister of My Heart

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
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    5 out of 5 stars

What a riveting story!

Absolutely brilliant, and every character incandescent. If only the narrator had made an effort to master the Hindi pronouns.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Sister of my Heart

I like Chitra Banerjee's books. However, they should have chosen a narrator who can pronounce Indian names properly. in my case, I cringed every time I heard "Su daaa" :( and of course other Indian words. Such a lovely story ruined by listening.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Lovely story awful narration

As mentioned by most of the reviews, the narration is just so awful. As an Indian it would be better if Indian narrated the book, the story referred to a lot of Bengali traditions which did not have the effect it needed.

I almost wanted to stop listening to the book because of the narration but the story line kept me hooked.
It was such a heart warming story. Loved every bit of the story. It just talks us through 2 girls growing up in Calcutta and the ups and downs that the face.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Beautiful!

Loved it! Such a beautifully narrated story. The narrator has done an excellent job with the emotions behind certain phrases.
the story is amazing as well. Highly recommend reading it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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The sisterhood

The reading is eloquent and emotive but unfortunately the accent on Bengali and Hindi words were too twisted to enjoy seamlessly.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Excellent story should be made into a film

I loved the story but the narration was really off. Story was based in India so the narration should have been done by Indian so that the words could be easily understood.
I so loved this book and want to read the sequel-The Vine of Desire , but I am dreading to hear it as unfortunately its been narrated by the same person.
I have read many comments and the most important request to Audible is to make sure the diction/narration is matching the characters in the books.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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Worst pronunciation

It is a shame that the narrator does know the correct pronunciation of Ganga and Singh and Durga, maybe the most common and wide used Indian words. And here if we Indians pronounce ‘ Beethovan’ wrongly, we are laughed at and ridiculed! What a reekish narration, I almost feel ashamed at the absurdity. Story is good though, worth reading, but do not listen to this if you do not want to be disappointed.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

an easy read

a different narrator would have made a big difference. the plotline is predictable but the novel beautifully explores the bond between women- sister, daughter, granddaughter, daughter-in-law

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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A story of relationships

The author has brought to life this interlaced world of sisters - Anju and Sudha, and their journey through the ups and downs in their individual lives. Set in the late 1980's, this story is extremely relatable and touches upon the values, beliefs and culture of Bengal / India. it weaves the nature of relationships so vividly that you start to feel the love, tension and all the other emotions between the characters of the story. Not only the 2 leads, but characters like industrious Gowri Ma, heart broken Ashok, pensive Sanjay, story teller Peshi, self centered Nalini, torn Ramesh, dominating Mrs Saniyal are all wonderfully portrayed with intricate details. Audible version narrated by Julia Whelan is brilliant too.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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Heart-wrenching

The story of the 2 sisters took me back to my childhood days and the bond between the two was so ethereal. The story made me weep..took my heart out.
Only the narration could have been better

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