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The Covenant of Water

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The Covenant of Water

Written by: Abraham Verghese
Narrated by: Abraham Verghese
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About this listen

OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • SUBJECT OF A SIX-PART SUPER SOUL PODCAST SERIES HOSTED BY OPRAH WINFREY

From the New York Times-bestselling author of Cutting for Stone comes a stunning and magisterial epic of love, faith, and medicine, set in Kerala, South India, following three generations of a family seeking the answers to a strange secret

“One of the best books I’ve read in my entire life. It’s epic. It’s transportive . . . It was unputdownable!”—Oprah Winfrey, OprahDaily.com

The Covenant of Water is the long-awaited new novel by Abraham Verghese, the author of the major word-of-mouth bestseller Cutting for Stone, which has sold over 1.5 million copies in the United States alone and remained on the New York Times bestseller list for over two years.

Spanning the years 1900 to 1977, The Covenant of Water is set in Kerala, on South India’s Malabar Coast, and follows three generations of a family that suffers a peculiar affliction: in every generation, at least one person dies by drowning—and in Kerala, water is everywhere. At the turn of the century, a twelve-year-old girl from Kerala’s long-existing Christian community, grieving the death of her father, is sent by boat to her wedding, where she will meet her forty-year-old husband for the first time. From this unforgettable new beginning, the young girl—and future matriarch, known as Big Ammachi—will witness unthinkable changes over the span of her extraordinary life, full of joy and triumph as well as hardship and loss, her faith and love the only constants.

A shimmering evocation of a bygone India and of the passage of time itself, The Covenant of Water is a hymn to progress in medicine and to human understanding, and a humbling testament to the difficulties undergone by past generations for the sake of those alive today. It is one of the most masterful literary novels published in recent years.

©2022 Abraham Verghese (P)2022 Recorded Books
Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction South Asian Creators Heartfelt
All stars
Most Relevant
This book of life events and human nature was well-written and very engaging.
I was first turned off by the length of the book but am grateful that I took the challenge.
There are several storylines; some come together quickly and others take some time, but be patient for you will be rewarded in the end.
Thank you Brother Verghese for opening my understanding.

Best all encompassing fiction book

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Verghese narrates, making the stories vivid and colourful, the characters beloved, and the locations like ones I’ve actually visited. His attention to detail and to the importance of relationships drew me closer and tighter into the stories. I was sad to hear him say, “The End.”

Beautiful stories with stories

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As I neared the end of this deeply moving, exquisitely written book, I didn’t want to finish it. Truly perhaps the finest novel I have ever read in a long lifetime of reading. Thank you, Abraham Verghese for sharing your wisdom, compassion and spirituality through irresistible storytelling.

Best Ever

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The hype is real! I was hesitant at first read as it involved child marriage at the start. It made me uncomfortable and angry, but then it evolved. It was a whole other era and its cultural norms at the time. The storyline starts off in 1900, ends in the 1970s. So many chapters of one family’s generational perils. I hope there is a part-deux one day with Mariamma and Lennon’s completed tales.

Dr. Abraham Verghese is an incredible author and audiobook storyteller. Such passion and sincerity in every spoken chapter. His voice was so soothing throughout. I will go on to read or listen his other novel.

Quotes from the book:

“What defines a family isn't blood but the secrets they share. Secrets that can bind them together or bring them to their knees when revealed.”

“Simple people can live heroic lives.”

“To see the miraculous in the ordinary is a more precious gift than prophecy.”

“To be listened to is healing.”

“The voyage of discovery is not about new lands, but having new eyes.”

“The sweetness of life is sure in only two things: love and sugar. If you don’t get enough of the first, have more of the second!” (PREACH!)

“All water is connected and only land and people are discontinuous.”

A superb and engaging read!

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Beautifully written, exotic setting, intriguing, revealing, and romantic. Loved being on this journey of a book.

31 hours wasn’t long enough

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