Independence
A Novel
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo first 3 months
Buy Now for $32.62
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Sneha Mathan
-
Written by:
-
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
About this listen
“Divakaruni tells the story of India’s independence through the eyes of three sisters, each of whom is uniquely different, with her own desires and flaws. I cheered for them and cried with them as they move through the history of their country that is at once devastating, inspiring, and triumphant. You will, too.”—Lisa See, #1 New York Times bestselling author
Set during the partition of British India in 1947, a time when neighbor was pitted against neighbor and families were torn apart, award-winning author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s novel brings to life the sweeping story of three sisters caught up in events beyond their control, their unbreakable bond, and their incredible struggle against powerful odds.
India, 1947.
In a rural village in Bengal live three sisters, daughters of a well-respected doctor.
Priya: intelligent and idealistic, resolved to follow in her father’s footsteps and become a doctor, though society frowns on it.
Deepa: the beauty, determined to make a marriage that will bring her family joy and status.
Jamini: devout, sharp-eyed, and a talented quiltmaker, with deeper passions than she reveals.
Theirs is a home of love and safety, a refuge from the violent events taking shape in the nation. Then their father is killed during a riot, and even their neighbors turn against them, bringing the events of their country closer to home.
As Priya determinedly pursues her career goal, Deepa falls deeply in love with a Muslim, causing her to break with her family. And Jamini attempts to hold her family together, even as she secretly longs for her sister’s fiancè.
When the partition of India is officially decided, a drastic—and dangerous—change is in the air. India is now for Hindus, Pakistan for Muslims. The sisters find themselves separated from one another, each on different paths. They fear for what will happen to not just themselves, but each other.
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni outdoes herself with this deeply moving story of sisterhood and friendship, painting an account of India’s independence simultaneously exhilarating and devastating, that will make any listener—new or old—a devoted fan.
©2023 Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (P)2023 HarperCollins PublishersYou may also enjoy...
-
The Last Queen
- A Novel of Courage and Resistance
- Written by: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 13 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sharp-eyed, stubborn, and passionate, Jindan was known for her beauty. When she caught the eye of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, she was elevated to royalty, becoming his youngest and last queen—and his favorite. And when her son, barely six years old, unexpectedly inherited the throne, Jindan assumed the regency. She transformed herself from pampered wife to warrior ruler, determined to protect her people and her son’s birthright from the encroaching British Empire.
-
-
Loved it!
- By MandyT on 2024-07-22
Written by: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
-
When the Moon Is Low
- A Novel
- Written by: Nadia Hashimi
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan, Neil Shah
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mahmoud’s passion for his wife, Fereiba, a schoolteacher, is greater than any love she’s ever known. But their happy, middle-class world implodes when their country is engulfed in war and the Taliban rises to power. Mahmoud, a civil engineer, becomes a target of the new fundamentalist regime and is murdered. Forced to flee Kabul with her three children, Fereiba must find a way to cross Europe and reach her sister’s family in England. With forged papers and help from kind strangers they meet along the way, Fereiba make a dangerous crossing into Iran under cover of darkness.
Written by: Nadia Hashimi
-
Banyan Moon
- A Novel
- Written by: Thao Thai
- Narrated by: Cindy Kay, Catherine Ho, Elyse Dinh
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Ann Tran gets the call that her fiercely beloved grandmother, Minh, has passed away, her life is already at a crossroads. In the years since she’s last seen Minh, Ann has built a seemingly perfect life—a beautiful lake house, a charming professor boyfriend, and invites to elegant parties that bubble over with champagne and good taste—but it all crumbles with one positive pregnancy test. With both her relationship and carefully planned future now in question, Ann returns home to Florida to face her estranged mother, Huơng.
Written by: Thao Thai
-
The Secrets Between Us
- A Novel
- Written by: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bhima, the unforgettable main character of Thrity Umrigar’s beloved national best seller, The Space Between Us, returns in this triumphant sequel - a poignant and compelling novel in which the former servant struggles against the circumstances of class and misfortune to forge a new path for herself and her granddaughter in modern India. Poor and illiterate, Bhima had faithfully worked for the Dubash family, an upper-middle-class Parsi household, for more than 20 years.
-
-
Extraordinary
- By Anonymous User on 2022-12-19
Written by: Thrity Umrigar
-
You Were Always Mine
- A Novel
- Written by: Christine Pride, Jo Piazza
- Narrated by: Alexis Floyd, Jenni Barber
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cinnamon Haynes has fought hard for a life she never thought was possible—a good man by her side, a steady job as a career counselor at a local community college, and a cozy house in a quaint little beach town. It may not look like much, but it’s more than she ever dreamed of or what her difficult childhood promised. Her life’s mantra is to be good, quiet, grateful. Until something shifts and Cinnamon is suddenly haunted by a terrifying question: “Is this all there is?”
Written by: Christine Pride, and others
-
Dial A for Aunties
- Written by: Jesse Q. Sutanto
- Narrated by: Risa Mei
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves to be a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate, especially when it is inadvertently shipped in a cake cooler to the over-the-top billionaire wedding Meddy, her Ma, and aunties are working at an island resort on the California coastline.
-
-
A bit boring
- By User on 2021-08-12
Written by: Jesse Q. Sutanto
-
The Last Queen
- A Novel of Courage and Resistance
- Written by: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 13 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sharp-eyed, stubborn, and passionate, Jindan was known for her beauty. When she caught the eye of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, she was elevated to royalty, becoming his youngest and last queen—and his favorite. And when her son, barely six years old, unexpectedly inherited the throne, Jindan assumed the regency. She transformed herself from pampered wife to warrior ruler, determined to protect her people and her son’s birthright from the encroaching British Empire.
-
-
Loved it!
- By MandyT on 2024-07-22
Written by: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
-
When the Moon Is Low
- A Novel
- Written by: Nadia Hashimi
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan, Neil Shah
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mahmoud’s passion for his wife, Fereiba, a schoolteacher, is greater than any love she’s ever known. But their happy, middle-class world implodes when their country is engulfed in war and the Taliban rises to power. Mahmoud, a civil engineer, becomes a target of the new fundamentalist regime and is murdered. Forced to flee Kabul with her three children, Fereiba must find a way to cross Europe and reach her sister’s family in England. With forged papers and help from kind strangers they meet along the way, Fereiba make a dangerous crossing into Iran under cover of darkness.
Written by: Nadia Hashimi
-
Banyan Moon
- A Novel
- Written by: Thao Thai
- Narrated by: Cindy Kay, Catherine Ho, Elyse Dinh
- Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Ann Tran gets the call that her fiercely beloved grandmother, Minh, has passed away, her life is already at a crossroads. In the years since she’s last seen Minh, Ann has built a seemingly perfect life—a beautiful lake house, a charming professor boyfriend, and invites to elegant parties that bubble over with champagne and good taste—but it all crumbles with one positive pregnancy test. With both her relationship and carefully planned future now in question, Ann returns home to Florida to face her estranged mother, Huơng.
Written by: Thao Thai
-
The Secrets Between Us
- A Novel
- Written by: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bhima, the unforgettable main character of Thrity Umrigar’s beloved national best seller, The Space Between Us, returns in this triumphant sequel - a poignant and compelling novel in which the former servant struggles against the circumstances of class and misfortune to forge a new path for herself and her granddaughter in modern India. Poor and illiterate, Bhima had faithfully worked for the Dubash family, an upper-middle-class Parsi household, for more than 20 years.
-
-
Extraordinary
- By Anonymous User on 2022-12-19
Written by: Thrity Umrigar
-
You Were Always Mine
- A Novel
- Written by: Christine Pride, Jo Piazza
- Narrated by: Alexis Floyd, Jenni Barber
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cinnamon Haynes has fought hard for a life she never thought was possible—a good man by her side, a steady job as a career counselor at a local community college, and a cozy house in a quaint little beach town. It may not look like much, but it’s more than she ever dreamed of or what her difficult childhood promised. Her life’s mantra is to be good, quiet, grateful. Until something shifts and Cinnamon is suddenly haunted by a terrifying question: “Is this all there is?”
Written by: Christine Pride, and others
-
Dial A for Aunties
- Written by: Jesse Q. Sutanto
- Narrated by: Risa Mei
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Meddelin Chan ends up accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves to be a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate, especially when it is inadvertently shipped in a cake cooler to the over-the-top billionaire wedding Meddy, her Ma, and aunties are working at an island resort on the California coastline.
-
-
A bit boring
- By User on 2021-08-12
Written by: Jesse Q. Sutanto
-
The Complete Jaipur Trilogy
- The Henna Artist, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur, and The Perfumist of Paris
- Written by: Alka Joshi
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan, Ariyan Kassam, Deepa Samuel
- Length: 33 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vivid and compelling, The Henna Artist opens a door into a world that is at once lush and fascinating, stark and cruel. Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. There she becomes the most highly requested henna artist—and confidante—to the wealthy women of the upper class. But trusted with the secrets of the wealthy, she can never reveal her own. Years later, she is confronted by her husband who has tracked her down.
-
-
Loved this trilogy
- By Marilyn J Kaufman on 2024-02-01
Written by: Alka Joshi
-
The Space Between Us
- Written by: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Purva Bedi
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author Thrity Umrigar won the Nieman Fellowship and earned a finalist spot for the PEN/Beyond Margins award with The Space Between Us. Set in modern-day India, this evocative novel follows upper-middle-class Parsi housewife Sera Dubash and 65-year-old illiterate household worker Bhima as they make their way through life. Though separated by their stations in life, the two women share bonds of womanhood that prove far stronger than the divisions of class or culture.
-
-
Wonderful!
- By Anonymous User on 2020-08-03
Written by: Thrity Umrigar
-
A Long Petal of the Sea
- A Novel
- Written by: Isabel Allende, Nick Caistor, Amanda Hopkinson
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the late 1930s, civil war grips Spain. When General Franco and his Fascists succeed in overthrowing the government, hundreds of thousands are forced to flee in a treacherous journey over the mountains to the French border. Among them is Roser, a pregnant young widow, who finds her life intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, an army doctor and the brother of her deceased love. In order to survive, the two must unite in a marriage neither of them desires.
-
-
A long story well told
- By JEK on 2020-02-06
Written by: Isabel Allende, and others
-
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride
- A Novel
- Written by: Roshani Chokshi
- Narrated by: Steve West, Sura Siu
- Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the tradition of sumptuous gothic novels like Starling House and The Bloody Chamber comes a dark fairy tale-infused story about a cursed friendship and a marriage steeped in secrets—the breathtaking adult debut from New York Times bestselling author Roshani Chokshi.
Written by: Roshani Chokshi
-
Goddess of the River
- Written by: Vaishnavi Patel
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ganga, joyful goddess of the river, serves as caretaker to the mischievous godlings who roam her banks. But when their antics incur the wrath of a powerful sage, Ganga is cursed to become mortal, bound to her human form until she fulfills the obligations of the curse. Though she knows nothing of mortal life, Ganga weds King Shantanu and becomes a queen, determined to regain her freedom no matter the cost. But in a cruel turn of fate, just as she is freed of her binding, she is forced to leave her infant son behind. Her son, prince Devavrata, unwittingly carries the legacy of Ganga’s curse.
Written by: Vaishnavi Patel
-
Nowhere, Exactly
- On Identity and Belonging
- Written by: M.G. Vassanji
- Narrated by: Raoul Bhaneja
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
M.G. Vassanji has been exploring the immigrant experience for over three decades, drawing deeply on his own transnational upbringing and intimate understanding of the unique challenges and perspectives born from leaving one's home to resettle in a new land. The question of identity, of how to configure and see oneself within this new land, is one such challenge faced. But Vassanji suggests that a more fundamental and slippery endeavour than establishing one's identity is how, if ever, we can establish a sense of belonging.
Written by: M.G. Vassanji
-
The Story Hour
- Written by: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Sneha Mathan
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An experienced psychologist, Maggie carefully maintains emotional distance from her patients. But when she meets a young Indian woman who tried to kill herself, her professional detachment disintegrates. Cut off from her family in India, Lakshmi is desperately lonely and trapped in a loveless marriage. Moved by her plight, Maggie treats Lakshmi in her home office for free, quickly realizing that the despondent woman doesn't need a shrink; she needs a friend.
Written by: Thrity Umrigar
-
Now You See Us
- A Novel
- Written by: Balli Kaur Jaswal
- Narrated by: Angela Lin
- Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An explosive news story shatters Singapore’s famous tranquility—and sends a chill down the spine of every domestic worker. Flordeliza Martinez, a Filipina maid, has been arrested for murdering her female employer. The three women don’t know the accused well, but she could be any of them; every worker knows stories of women who were scapegoated or even executed for crimes they didn’t commit. Shocked into action, Donita, Corazon, and Angel will use their considerable moxie and insight to piece together the mystery of what really happened.
-
-
So so good!
- By Naomi on 2023-07-20
Written by: Balli Kaur Jaswal
-
The Act of Disappearing
- A Novel
- Written by: Nathan Gower
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Ashley Klanac
- Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Julia White is struggling: her bartending job isn’t cutting it, and her first book has sold hardly any copies. She’s broke, barely able to make ends meet while drowning in her late mother’s medical bills and reeling after a one-night stand with her ex-boyfriend, who’s now completely ghosted her. Enter Johnathan Aster, world-renowned photographer, with a proposal: he has a never-before-seen photograph of a woman falling from a train bridge, clutching what appears to be a baby. And he wants Julia to research the story.
-
-
excellent story and narrator
- By Louise Nicholson on 2025-01-12
Written by: Nathan Gower
-
The Exiles
- A Novel
- Written by: Christina Baker Kline
- Narrated by: Caroline Lee
- Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Seduced by her employer’s son, Evangeline, a naïve young governess in early 19th-century London, is discharged when her pregnancy is discovered and sent to the notorious Newgate Prison. After months in the fetid, overcrowded jail, she learns she is sentenced to "the land beyond the seas", Van Diemen’s Land, a penal colony in Australia. Though uncertain of what awaits, Evangeline knows one thing: The child she carries will be born on the months-long voyage to this distant land.
-
-
Loved the perspectives
- By B on 2024-07-21
Written by: Christina Baker Kline
-
The Librarian of Burned Books
- A Novel
- Written by: Brianna Labuskes
- Narrated by: Caroline Hewitt, Eleanor Caudill, Karissa Vacker
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For fans of The Rose Code and The Paris Library, The Librarian of Burned Books is a captivating WWII-era novel about the intertwined fates of three women who believe in the power of books to triumph over the very darkest moments of war.
-
-
Absolutely outstanding
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-05-03
Written by: Brianna Labuskes
-
The Museum of Failures
- Written by: Thrity Umrigar
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Remy Wadia left India for the United States long ago, carrying his resentment of his mother with him. He has now returned to Bombay to adopt a baby from a young pregnant girl—and to see his elderly mother for the first time in several years. Discovering that his mother is in the hospital, has stopped talking, and seems to have given up on life, he is struck with guilt for not realizing just how sick she has become.
-
-
Excellent!
- By Laura on 2024-01-13
Written by: Thrity Umrigar
What listeners say about Independence
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Wanda
- 2023-06-28
Independence
Very well written story. The tenacity of the characters as they lived through changing and dangerous times.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Raman N.
- 2023-09-19
A bit melodramatic
Good topic; not many books about the impact of partition of Bengal. The author has packed too many events in the story. At times it is melodramatic.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-06-17
Wonderful read!
A beautiful story of humanity’s struggle to live in harmony . Well written and narrated. Truly enjoyed this book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!