
The Book of Lost Friends
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 for the first 3 months

Buy Now for $29.14
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Written by:
-
Lisa Wingate
About this listen
New York Times Best Seller
From the best-selling author of Before We Were Yours comes a dramatic historical novel of three young women searching for family amid the destruction of the post-Civil War South, and of a modern-day teacher who learns of their story and its vital connection to her students’ lives.
“An absorbing historical...enthralling.” (Library Journal)
Best-selling author Lisa Wingate brings to life startling stories from actual “Lost Friends” advertisements that appeared in Southern newspapers after the Civil War, as newly freed slaves desperately searched for loved ones who had been sold away.
Louisiana, 1875: In the tumultuous era of Reconstruction, three young women set off as unwilling companions on a perilous quest: Hannie, a freed slave; Lavinia, the pampered heir to a now destitute plantation; and Juneau Jane, Lavinia’s Creole half sister. Each carries private wounds and powerful secrets as they head for Texas, following roads rife with vigilantes and soldiers still fighting a war lost a decade before. For Lavinia and Juneau Jane, the journey is one of stolen inheritance and financial desperation, but for Hannie, torn from her mother and siblings before slavery’s end, the pilgrimage west reignites an agonizing question: Could her long-lost family still be out there? Beyond the swamps lie the limitless frontiers of Texas and, improbably, hope.
Louisiana, 1987: For first-year teacher Benedetta Silva, a subsidized job at a poor rural school seems like the ticket to canceling her hefty student debt - until she lands in a tiny, out-of-step Mississippi River town. Augustine, Louisiana, is suspicious of new ideas and new people, and Benny can scarcely comprehend the lives of her poverty-stricken students. But amid the gnarled live oaks and run-down plantation homes lie the century-old history of three young women, a long-ago journey, and a hidden book that could change everything.
©2020 Lisa Wingate (P)2020 Random House AudioYou may also enjoy...
-
The Keeper of Happy Endings
- Written by: Barbara Davis
- Narrated by: Robin Siegerman, Hope Newhouse
- Length: 15 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Soline Roussel is well schooled in the business of happy endings. For generations her family has kept an exclusive bridal salon in Paris, where magic is worked with needle and thread. It’s said that the bride who wears a Roussel gown is guaranteed a lifetime of joy. But devastating losses during World War II leave Soline’s world and heart in ruins and her faith in love shaken. She boxes up her memories, stowing them away, along with her broken dreams, determined to forget.
-
-
Le magic
- By Suzette on 2025-02-12
Written by: Barbara Davis
-
Ines of My Soul
- A Novel
- Written by: Isabel Allende
- Narrated by: Isabel Allende, Alma Cuervo
- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Though she was born into poverty, Inés Suárez, a seamstress in 16th-century Spain, embodies the same restless hope and opportunism that fuels her nation’s conquest of the Americas. Learning that her shiftless husband has vanished, Inés uses his disappearance to embark on her own adventure. It is a journey will lead her to Pedro de Valdivia - a conquistador who becomes the first royal governor of Chile - and to a love that not only changes her life but the course of history.
-
-
Not sure how to review this book...
- By M.S. on 2025-01-28
Written by: Isabel Allende
-
The Christmas Wedding Guest
- Written by: Susan Mallery
- Narrated by: Tanya Eby
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Somerville sisters believe in love, but they’ve lost faith it will happen for them. Reggie hasn’t been home since the end of the world’s shortest engagement. When her parents decide to renew their vows, she buffs up her twinkle to help with the Christmas wedding. Unexpectedly, Toby, her first love, is back too, and the spark between them shines as brightly as ever. In the spirit of the season, will they let go of past hurts and greet the New Year together?
-
-
Loved it!
- By Ali H on 2021-10-27
Written by: Susan Mallery
-
The Making of Us
- A Novel
- Written by: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Helen Duff
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lydia, Dean, and Robyn live very different lives, but each of them, independently, has always felt that something was missing. What they don't know is that a letter is about to arrive that will turn their lives upside down. It's a letter containing a secret - one that will bind them together and show them what love and family and friendship really mean.
-
-
loved this story
- By GCY Newell on 2019-01-08
Written by: Lisa Jewell
-
Sparks Like Stars
- A Novel
- Written by: Nadia Hashimi
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marno
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kabul, 1978: The daughter of a prominent family, Sitara Zamani lives a privileged life in Afghanistan’s thriving cosmopolitan capital. The 1970s are a time of remarkable promise under the leadership of people like Sardar Daoud, Afghanistan’s progressive president, and Sitara’s beloved father, his right-hand man. But the ten-year-old Sitara’s world is shattered when communists stage a coup, assassinating the president and Sitara’s entire family. Only she survives.
-
-
Beautiful writing, incredible story
- By snowpatch100 on 2021-04-23
Written by: Nadia Hashimi
-
The Prince of Tides
- A Novel
- Written by: Pat Conroy
- Narrated by: Alan Carlson
- Length: 25 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A modern American classic and a family saga that spans decades, this is the story of the volatile Tom Wingo, his brilliant but troubled twin sister, Savannah, and the complex and damaging family legacy they share. Moving between the sparkling glamour of New York City and the vanishing beauty of the South Carolina low country, The Prince of Tides is Pat Conroy’s masterwork.
-
-
One of my favourite books
- By Anonymous User on 2023-08-06
Written by: Pat Conroy
-
The Keeper of Happy Endings
- Written by: Barbara Davis
- Narrated by: Robin Siegerman, Hope Newhouse
- Length: 15 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Soline Roussel is well schooled in the business of happy endings. For generations her family has kept an exclusive bridal salon in Paris, where magic is worked with needle and thread. It’s said that the bride who wears a Roussel gown is guaranteed a lifetime of joy. But devastating losses during World War II leave Soline’s world and heart in ruins and her faith in love shaken. She boxes up her memories, stowing them away, along with her broken dreams, determined to forget.
-
-
Le magic
- By Suzette on 2025-02-12
Written by: Barbara Davis
-
Ines of My Soul
- A Novel
- Written by: Isabel Allende
- Narrated by: Isabel Allende, Alma Cuervo
- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Though she was born into poverty, Inés Suárez, a seamstress in 16th-century Spain, embodies the same restless hope and opportunism that fuels her nation’s conquest of the Americas. Learning that her shiftless husband has vanished, Inés uses his disappearance to embark on her own adventure. It is a journey will lead her to Pedro de Valdivia - a conquistador who becomes the first royal governor of Chile - and to a love that not only changes her life but the course of history.
-
-
Not sure how to review this book...
- By M.S. on 2025-01-28
Written by: Isabel Allende
-
The Christmas Wedding Guest
- Written by: Susan Mallery
- Narrated by: Tanya Eby
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Somerville sisters believe in love, but they’ve lost faith it will happen for them. Reggie hasn’t been home since the end of the world’s shortest engagement. When her parents decide to renew their vows, she buffs up her twinkle to help with the Christmas wedding. Unexpectedly, Toby, her first love, is back too, and the spark between them shines as brightly as ever. In the spirit of the season, will they let go of past hurts and greet the New Year together?
-
-
Loved it!
- By Ali H on 2021-10-27
Written by: Susan Mallery
-
The Making of Us
- A Novel
- Written by: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Helen Duff
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Lydia, Dean, and Robyn live very different lives, but each of them, independently, has always felt that something was missing. What they don't know is that a letter is about to arrive that will turn their lives upside down. It's a letter containing a secret - one that will bind them together and show them what love and family and friendship really mean.
-
-
loved this story
- By GCY Newell on 2019-01-08
Written by: Lisa Jewell
-
Sparks Like Stars
- A Novel
- Written by: Nadia Hashimi
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marno
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kabul, 1978: The daughter of a prominent family, Sitara Zamani lives a privileged life in Afghanistan’s thriving cosmopolitan capital. The 1970s are a time of remarkable promise under the leadership of people like Sardar Daoud, Afghanistan’s progressive president, and Sitara’s beloved father, his right-hand man. But the ten-year-old Sitara’s world is shattered when communists stage a coup, assassinating the president and Sitara’s entire family. Only she survives.
-
-
Beautiful writing, incredible story
- By snowpatch100 on 2021-04-23
Written by: Nadia Hashimi
-
The Prince of Tides
- A Novel
- Written by: Pat Conroy
- Narrated by: Alan Carlson
- Length: 25 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A modern American classic and a family saga that spans decades, this is the story of the volatile Tom Wingo, his brilliant but troubled twin sister, Savannah, and the complex and damaging family legacy they share. Moving between the sparkling glamour of New York City and the vanishing beauty of the South Carolina low country, The Prince of Tides is Pat Conroy’s masterwork.
-
-
One of my favourite books
- By Anonymous User on 2023-08-06
Written by: Pat Conroy
-
Night Road
- Written by: Kristin Hannah
- Narrated by: Kathleen McInerney
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For 18 years, Jude Farraday has put her children’s needs above her own, and it shows - her twins, Mia and Zach, are bright and happy teenagers. When Lexi Baill moves into their small, close-knit community, no one is more welcoming than Jude. Lexi, a former foster child with a dark past, quickly becomes Mia’s best friend. Then Zach falls in love with Lexi and the three become inseparable. Jude does everything to keep her kids on track for college and out of harm’s way. It has always been easy - until senior year of high school. Suddenly she is at a loss.
-
-
Good until the end
- By Amazon Customer on 2019-09-24
Written by: Kristin Hannah
-
The Truth About Melody Browne
- Written by: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Antonia Beamish
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When she was 9 years old, Melody Browne's house burned down, and it took all of her childhood memories with it. Now she's a single mother of a teenage boy living in Central London. She hasn't seen her parents since she left home at 15, but she doesn't mind. She's better off on her own. She works as a dinner lady at her son's school and has no idea where her humdrum life is heading. But one summer's night, a hypnotist inadvertently unlocks memories of her childhood, and her whole life is turned upside down.
-
-
A page turner
- By Cheryl Benoit on 2020-12-06
Written by: Lisa Jewell
-
The London Bookshop Affair
- A Novel of the Cold War
- Written by: Louise Fein
- Narrated by: Marisa Calin
- Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London, 1962: The world is teetering on the brink of nuclear war but life must go on. Celia Duchesne longs for a career, but with no means or qualifications, passes her time working at a dusty bookshop. The day a handsome American enters the shop, she thinks she might have found her way out of the monotony. Just as the excitement of a budding relationship engulfs her, a devastating secret draws her into the murky world of espionage.
-
-
Connected Story Across Two Timelines
- By liveformemories on 2024-01-30
Written by: Louise Fein
-
The Oysterville Sewing Circle
- A Novel
- Written by: Susan Wiggs
- Narrated by: Khristine Hvam
- Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the break of dawn, Caroline Shelby rolls into Oysterville, Washington, a tiny hamlet at the edge of the raging Pacific. She’s come home. Home to a place she thought she’d left forever, home of her heart and memories, but not her future. Ten years ago, Caroline launched a career in the glamorous fashion world of Manhattan. But her success in New York imploded on a wave of scandal and tragedy, forcing her to flee to the only safe place she knows. And in the backseat of Caroline’s car are two children who were orphaned in a single chilling moment.
-
-
Great book
- By Charonne on 2024-03-23
Written by: Susan Wiggs
-
Adult Onset
- Written by: Ann-Marie MacDonald
- Narrated by: Ann-Marie MacDonald
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mary Rose MacKinnon is a successful author of YA fiction doing a tour of duty as stay-at-home mom while her partner Hilary takes a turn focusing on her career. She tries valiantly to balance the (mostly) solo parenting of two young children with the relentless needs of her aging parents. But amid the hilarities of full-on domesticity arises a sense of dread. Do others notice the dents in the expensive refrigerator?
-
-
Powerful and heartful!
- By Fadia Zakkak on 2018-08-25
Written by: Ann-Marie MacDonald
-
The Paris Agent
- Written by: Kelly Rimmer
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden, Fiona Hardingham, Emma Fenney
- Length: 12 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twenty-five years after the end of the war, Noah Ainsworth is still preoccupied with those perilous, exhilarating years as a British SOE operative in France. A head injury sustained on his final operation has caused frustrating gaps in his memory—in particular about the agent who saved his life during that mission gone wrong, whose real name he never knew, nor whether she even survived the war.
-
-
Haunting story
- By Lynn on 2024-10-11
Written by: Kelly Rimmer
-
Beneath a Scarlet Sky
- A Novel
- Written by: Mark Sullivan
- Narrated by: Will Damron
- Length: 17 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. He's a normal Italian teenager - obsessed with music, food, and girls - but his days of innocence are numbered. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior. In an attempt to protect him, Pino's parents force him to enlist as a German soldier - a move they think will keep him out of combat.
-
-
Great insight into the Italian Front
- By Frank on 2018-10-20
Written by: Mark Sullivan
-
A Single Thread
- A Novel
- Written by: Tracy Chevalier
- Narrated by: Fenella Woolgar
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
1932. After the Great War took both her beloved brother and her fiancé, Violet Speedwell has become a "surplus woman," one of a generation doomed to a life of spinsterhood after the war killed so many young men. Yet Violet cannot reconcile herself to a life spent caring for her grieving, embittered mother. After countless meals of boiled eggs and dry toast, she saves enough to move out of her mother's place and into the town of Winchester, home to one of England's grandest cathedrals.
-
-
Lovely story of becoming independent.
- By Susan watts on 2023-12-23
Written by: Tracy Chevalier
-
Never Too Late
- Written by: Danielle Steel
- Narrated by: Dan John Miller
- Length: 6 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Kezia Cooper Hobson, recently widowed, arrives in New York from San Francisco. Determined to make a fresh start, she has just completed the sale of her Pacific Heights home, not to mention her husband's venture capital firm, and in doing so, is also freed from her responsibility as a board member of the company. Bringing with her only a few personal treasures, she is excited to move into the blank slate of a beautiful midtown penthouse, in the city that she has always loved. It is also where her two adult daughters now live.
-
-
The humanity of the characters.
- By Minerva Hernandez on 2024-09-06
Written by: Danielle Steel
-
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.
-
-
This book was written prior to the current political situation, but it is frighteningly relevant.
- By Laurel B. on 2025-02-04
Written by: Brianna Labuskes
-
The Five-Star Weekend
- Written by: Elin Hilderbrand
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 12 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hollis Shaw, creator of the popular food blog, Hungry with Hollis, is shocked when her heart surgeon husband, Matthew, is killed in a one-car accident on a snowy morning. The cracks in Hollis’s perfect life—her strained marriage and her complicated relationship with her daughter, Caroline—grow deeper. So when Hollis hears about something called a “Five-Star Weekend”—one woman organizes a trip for her best friend from each phase of her life: her teenage years, her twenties, her thirties, and midlife—she decides to host her own Five-Star Weekend on Nantucket.
-
-
Food for thought
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-06-28
Written by: Elin Hilderbrand
-
The Home for Unwanted Girls
- Written by: Joanna Goodman
- Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
- Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1950s Quebec, French and English tolerate each other with precarious civility - much like Maggie Hughes' parents. Maggie's English-speaking father has ambitions for his daughter that don't include marriage to the poor French boy on the next farm over. But Maggie's heart is captured by Gabriel Phénix. When she becomes pregnant at 15, her parents force her to give baby Elodie up for adoption and get her life "back on track".
-
-
Being Picky
- By Susan on 2019-09-03
Written by: Joanna Goodman
Featured Article: Historical Fiction Listens with Strong and Inspiring Female Protagonists
History teaches us what happened; historical fiction novels let us feel what happened. Without female protagonists in these historical fiction books, we’re only getting half the picture of what it might have been like to live through different time periods. Whether it’s a historical romance set hundreds of years ago or a twentieth-century drama based on actual events, discover listens that are both heartbreaking and humbling as female characters lead the way.
What listeners say about The Book of Lost Friends
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2020-05-27
Fantastic story
This book was one of those that you never want to end. It is a compelling story about the journey of 3 ladies just after the end of the civil war. Contrasted is a woman in modern times who is looking back at this long past era with a wonderful side story that dove tails perfectly in the end. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes historical fiction that is based on historical fact. An awesome read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ashley P
- 2020-06-23
Excellent Story
I really enjoyed this novel, the story was catching... I was slightly disapointed with the ending... I was waiting for something big, and it never came.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2020-12-31
Worth it!
Excellent Book!!
A very timely read (listen) especially in the light of Black Lives Matter movement. I was overcome with emotion several times.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Wendy Smeh
- 2020-12-13
my new favourite
This booked gripped me from its first pages. both stories were captivating and incredibly interesting. the characters were well developed and unique. i fell in love with them all.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Iciclequeen91
- 2020-08-02
Thought Provoking
This was a great listen and well read.
it's a book about family and what would we do too find them again.
I like how it went back and forth between past and present and how the kids learned about their heritage.
What a great idea the advertisement of lost friends.
Happy Listening
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ali-d
- 2021-09-28
Chilling to think it was true (ish)
Based on history this story weaves itself artfully a fictional story through historical events. Lisa does an amazing job of weaving the two seamlessly to capture a very small essence of the magnitude of what things must have been like.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- DALEE. Planette
- 2022-02-02
heartwarming & heartfelt
A really lovely story. I felt so drawn to these characters, they are so enlivened and so real and full. And unapologetic. My sadness comes from missing all the in between years after dear Hannie first meets her lost family and we find her again opening the Carnegie library. I want to read more about her -more about them all!!
The accents and dialects sound really good to me (in Canada) but the one Irish man they meet in a Texas prison. He's frankly, very terrible. But all in all I would highly recommend this story and will be looking for more Lisa Wingate books.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- coach amanda
- 2025-01-08
Hard to get started, but worth it
I found this book really hard to get started. I tried a couple of times and lost focus within an hour; however on my third attempt, I was hooked. I am very glad I tried again.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2020-04-30
Loved this story
Lisa Wingate has such a wonderful story telling ability. Giving us different perspectives from different times. I will look for more titles written by her.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2020-05-27
amazing story and performance
I couldn't put this down, I thought about the main characters throughout the days and took every chance to listen. I had goose bumps many times. you wont regret it! thank you for telling the story.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!