Soneela Nankani has narrated 154 audiobooks on Listento.it by 155 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.3★ across 2,512 ratings. The most-rated is This Naked Mind.
The Boy on the Beach
Summary
An intimate and poignant memoir about the family of Alan Kurdi - the young Syrian boy who became the global emblem for the desperate plight of millions of Syrian refugees - and of the many extraordinary journeys the Kurdis have taken, spanning countries and continents. Alan Kurdi’s body washed up on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea on September 2, 2015, and overnight, the political became personal, as the world awoke to the reality of the Syrian refugee crisis. Tima Kurdi first saw the shocking photo of her nephew in her home in Vancouver, Canada. But Tima did not need a photo to understand the truth - she and her family had already been living it. In The Boy on the Beach, Tima recounts her idyllic childhood in Syria, where she grew up with her brother Abdullah and other siblings in a tight-knit family. A strong-willed, independent woman, Tima studied to be a hairdresser and had dreams of seeing the world. At 22, she emigrated to Canada, but much of her family remained in Damascus. Life as a single mother and immigrant in a new country wasn’t always easy, and Tima recounts with heart-wrenching honesty the anguish of being torn between a new home and the world she’d left behind. As Tima struggled to adapt to life in a new land, war overtook her homeland. Caught in the crosshairs of civil war, her family risked everything and fled their homes. Tima worked tirelessly to help them find safety, but their journey was far from easy. Although thwarted by politics, hounded by violence, and separated by vast distances, the Kurdis encountered setbacks at every turn, they never gave up hope. And when tragedy struck, Tima suddenly found herself thrust onto the world stage as an advocate for refugees everywhere, a role for which she had never prepared but that allowed her to give voice to those who didn’t have an opportunity to speak for themselves. From the jasmine-scented neighbourhoods of Damascus before the war to the streets of Aleppo during it, to the refugee camps of Europe and the leafy suburbs of Vancouver, The Boy on the Beach is one family’s story of love, loss, and the persistent search for safe harbour in a devastating time of war.
©2018 Tima Kurdi (P)2018 Simon & Schuster
Aru Shah and the End of Time
Summary
Best-selling author Rick Riordan introduces this adventure by Roshani Chokshi about 12-year-old Aru Shah, who has a tendency to stretch the truth in order to fit in at school.
While her classmates are jetting off to family vacations in exotic locales, she'll be spending her autumn break at home, in the Museum of Ancient Indian Art and Culture, waiting for her mom to return from her latest archeological trip. Is it any wonder that Aru makes up stories about being royalty, traveling to Paris, and having a chauffeur?
One day, three schoolmates show up at Aru's doorstep to catch her in a lie. They don't believe her claim that the museum's Lamp of Bharata is cursed, and they dare Aru to prove it. Just a quick light, Aru thinks. Then she can get herself out of this mess and never ever fib again.
But lighting the lamp has dire consequences. She unwittingly frees the Sleeper, an ancient demon whose duty it is to awaken the God of Destruction. Her classmates and beloved mother are frozen in time, and it's up to Aru to save them.
The only way to stop the demon is to find the reincarnations of the five legendary Pandava brothers, protagonists of the Hindu epic poem, the Mahabharata, and journey through the Kingdom of Death. But how is one girl in Spider-Man pajamas supposed to do all that?
Includes a bonus PDF of the book's glossary.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2018 Roshani Chokshi (P)2018 Listening Library
Time and Again
Summary
One of the most beloved tales of our time! Science fiction, mystery, a passionate love story, and a detailed history of Old New York blend together in Jack Finney's spellbinding story of a young man enlisted in a secret Government experiment. Transported from the mid-20th century to New York City in the year 1882, Si Morley walks the fashionable "Ladies' Mile" of Broadway, is enchanted by the jingling sleigh bells in Central Park, and solves a 20th-century mystery by discovering its 19th-century roots. Falling in love with a beautiful young woman, he ultimately finds himself forced to choose between his lives in the present and the past. A story that will remain in the listener's memory, Time and Again is a remarkable blending of the troubled present and a nostalgic past, made vivid and extraordinarily moving by the images of a time that was... and perhaps still is.
©1970 Jack Finney (P)2011 Simon & Schuster
Roar
Summary
In a land ruled and shaped by violent magical storms, power lies with those who control them. Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. Long ago, the ungifted pledged fealty and service to her family in exchange for safe haven, and a kingdom was carved out from the wildlands and sustained by magic capable of repelling the world's deadliest foes. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora's been groomed to be the perfect queen. She's intelligent and brave and honorable. But she's yet to show any trace of the magic she'll need to protect her people. To keep her secret and save her crown, Aurora's mother arranges for her to marry a dark and brooding Stormling prince from another kingdom. At first the prince seems like the perfect solution to all her problems. He'll guarantee her spot as the next queen and be the champion her people need to remain safe. But the more secrets Aurora uncovers about him, the more a future with him frightens her. When she dons a disguise and sneaks out of the palace one night to spy on him, she stumbles upon a black market dealing in the very thing she lacks - storm magic. And the people selling it? They're not Stormlings. They're storm hunters. Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. And when a handsome young storm hunter reveals he was born without magic but possesses it now, Aurora realizes there's a third option for her future besides ruin or marriage. She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she's brave enough. Challenge a tempest. Survive it. And you become its master.
©2017 Cora Carmack (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
The Matchmaker's List
Summary
One devoted modern girl plus a meddlesome, traditional grandmother equals a heartwarming multicultural romantic comedy about finding love where you least expect it. Raina Anand may have finally given in to family pressure and agreed to let her grandmother play matchmaker, but that doesn't mean she has to like it - or that she has to play by the rules. Nani always took Raina's side when she tried to push past the traditional expectations of their tight-knit Indian-immigrant community, but now, she's ambushing Raina with a list of suitable bachelors. Is it too much to ask for a little space? Besides, what Nani doesn't know won't hurt her.... As Raina's life spirals into a parade of Nani-approved bachelors and disastrous blind dates, she must find a way out of this modern-day arranged-marriage trap without shattering her beloved grandmother's dreams.
©2019 Sonya Lalli (P)2019 Penguin Audio
Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions
Summary
"...powerful and necessary inspiration for the contemporary listener." (AudioFile Magazine) An updated third edition of the renowned feminist’s most diverse and timeless collection of essays, with a new foreword written by Emma Watson and new material written and read by Gloria Steinem. Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions has sold more than half a million copies since its original publication in 1983, acclaimed for its witty, warm, and life-changing view of the world, "as if women mattered". Steinem's truly personal writing is here, from the now-famous exposé "I Was a Playboy Bunny" to the moving tribute to her mother "Ruth's Song (Because She Could Not Sing It)". Her prescient essays on female genital mutilation and the difference between erotica and pornography are still referenced and relevant today, and the hilarious satire "If Men Could Menstruate” resonates as much as ever. As Watson writes of Steinem in her foreword, “She makes what otherwise can be arduous and depressing reading into something not only relatable, but also enjoyable.... Her plain common sense, calling things out as they are, will make you laugh out loud. This is her superpower.”
©1983; 1984; 1995; 2018; 2019 Text copyright by Gloria Steinem; Text copyright by East Toledo Productions, Inc.; Text copyright by Gloria Steinem; Foreword copyright by Emma Watson; Preface copyright by Gloria Steinem (P)2019 Macmillan Audio
There's Something About Sweetie
Summary
One of AudioFile’s Best Audiobooks of 2019! “Adorable, joyous.” (BuzzFeed) "I’m head-over-heels for this charming, funny, romantic, life-affirming book." (Becky Albertalli, New York Times best-selling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and Leah on the Offbeat) The irresistible companion novel to the New York Times best-seller When Dimple Met Rishi, which follows Rishi’s brother, Ashish, and a confident, self-proclaimed fat athlete named Sweetie as they both discover what love means to them. Ashish Patel didn’t know love could be so...sucky. After being dumped by his ex-girlfriend, his mojo goes AWOL. Even worse, his parents are annoyingly, smugly confident they could find him a better match. So, in a moment of weakness, Ash challenges them to set him up. The Patels insist Ashish date an Indian-American girl - under contract. Per subclause 1(a), he’ll be taking his date on “fun” excursions like visiting the Hindu temple and his eccentric Gita Auntie. Kill him now. How is this ever going to work? Sweetie Nair is many things: a formidable track athlete who can outrun most people in California, a loyal friend, a shower-singing champion. Oh, and she’s also fat. To Sweetie’s traditional parents, this last detail is the kiss of death. Sweetie loves her parents, but she’s so tired of being told she’s lacking because she’s fat. She decides it’s time to kick off the Sassy Sweetie Project, where she’ll show the world (and herself) what she’s really made of. Ashish and Sweetie both have something to prove. But with each date they realize there’s an unexpected magic growing between them. Can they find their true selves without losing each other?
©2019 Sandhya Menon (P)2019 Simon & Schuster
Destination Wedding
Summary
From the internationally best-selling author of The Windfall.... What could go wrong at a lavish Indian wedding with your best friend and your entire family? "Extremely obsessed with this book." (Chrissy Teigen) "A witty and romantic novel perfect for all readers." (Terry McMillan) Named one of the Best Books of the Year by Marie Claire and New York Post When Tina Das finds herself at a crossroads both professionally and personally, she wonders if a weeklong trip to Delhi for her cousin’s lavish wedding might be just the right kind of escape. Maybe a little time away from New York will help get her mind straight about her stalled career, her recent breakup, and her nagging suspicion that she’ll never feel as at home in America as she does in India. Tina hopes this destination wedding, taking place at Delhi’s poshest country club, Colebrookes, will be the perfect way to reflect and unwind. But with the entire Das family in attendance, a relaxing vacation is decidedly not in the cards. Her amicably divorced parents are each using the occasion to explore new love interests - for her mother, a white American boyfriend, for her father, an Indian widow arranged by an online matchmaker - and Tina’s squarely in the middle. A former fling is unexpectedly on the guest list, a work opportunity is blurring the lines of propriety on several fronts, and her best friend Marianne’s terrible penchant for international playboys is poised to cause all sorts of chaos back home. The accommodations are swanky, the alcohol is top-shelf, but this family wedding may be more drama than Tina can bear and could finally force her to make the choices she’s spent much of her life avoiding. Infused with warmth and charm, Destination Wedding grapples with the nuances of family, careers, belonging, and how we find the people who make a place feel like home.
©2020 Diksha Basu (P)2020 Random House Audio
The Person You Mean to Be
Summary
Foreword by Laszlo Bock, the best-selling author of Work Rules! and former senior vice president of People Operations at Google. An inspiring guide from Dolly Chugh, an award-winning social psychologist at the New York University Stern School of Business, on how to confront difficult issues including sexism, racism, inequality, and injustice so that you can make the world (and yourself) better. Many of us believe in equality, diversity, and inclusion. But how do we stand up for those values in our turbulent world? The Person You Mean to Be is the smart, "semi-bold" person’s guide to fighting for what you believe in. Dolly reveals the surprising causes of inequality, grounded in the "psychology of good people". Using her research findings in unconscious bias as well as work across psychology, sociology, economics, political science, and other disciplines, she offers practical tools to respectfully and effectively talk politics with family, to be a better colleague to people who don’t look like you, and to avoid being a well-intentioned barrier to equality. Being the person we mean to be starts with a look at ourselves. She argues that the only way to be on the right side of history is to be a good-ish - rather than good - person. Good-ish people are always growing. Second, she helps you find your "ordinary privilege" - the part of your everyday identity you take for granted, such as race for a white person, sexual orientation for a straight person, gender for a man, or education for a college graduate. This part of your identity may bring blind spots, but it is your best tool for influencing change. Third, Dolly introduces the psychological reasons that make it hard for us to see the bias in and around us. She leads you from willful ignorance to willful awareness. Finally, she guides you on how, when, and whom, to engage (and not engage) in your workplaces, homes, and communities. Her science-based approach is a method any of us can put to use in all parts of our life. Whether you are a long-time activist or new to the fight, you can start from where you are. Through the compelling stories Dolly shares and the surprising science she reports, Dolly guides each of us closer to being the person we mean to be.
©2018 Dolly Chugh (P)2018 HarperCollins Publishers
Internment
Summary
Rebellions are built on hope. Set in a horrifying near-future United States, 17-year-old Layla Amin and her parents are forced into an internment camp for Muslim American citizens. With the help of newly made friends also trapped within the internment camp, her boyfriend on the outside, and an unexpected alliance, Layla begins a journey to fight for freedom, leading a revolution against the internment camp's director and his guards. Heart-racing and emotional, Internment challenges listeners to fight complicit silence that exists in our society today. "A riveting and cautionary tale. Internment urges us to speak up and speak out, to ask questions and demand answers, and when those answers prove unsatisfactory, to resist." (Stacey Lee, award-winning author of Outrun the Moon)
©2019 Samira Ahmed (P)2019 Hachette Audio
A Walk Across the Sun
Summary
Corban Addison’s riveting suspense debut pulls back the veil on one of the most profound human rights issues of our day: human trafficking. After their coastal town in India is wiped out by a tsunami, two sisters are abducted and sold into the global underground sex trade. Meanwhile, half a world away, a D.C. attorney makes it his life’s work to end this dehumanizing practice.
©2012 Regulus Books, LLC (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC
Recipe for Persuasion
Summary
From the author of Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors comes another, clever, deeply layered, and heartwarming romantic comedy that follows in the Jane Austen tradition - this time, with a twist on Persuasion. Chef Ashna Raje desperately needs a new strategy. How else can she save her beloved restaurant and prove to her estranged, overachieving mother that she isn’t a complete screwup? When she’s asked to join the cast of Cooking with the Stars, the latest hit reality show teaming chefs with celebrities, it seems like just the leap of faith she needs to put her restaurant back on the map. She’s a chef, what’s the worst that could happen? Rico Silva, that’s what. Being paired with a celebrity who was her first love, the man who ghosted her at the worst possible time in her life, only proves what Ashna has always believed: Leaps of faith are a recipe for disaster. FIFA-winning soccer star Rico Silva isn't too happy to be paired up with Ashna, either. Losing Ashna years ago almost destroyed him. The only silver lining to this bizarre situation is that he can finally prove to Ashna that he's definitely over her. But when their catastrophic first meeting goes viral, social media becomes obsessed with their chemistry. The competition on the show is fierce...and so is the simmering desire between Ashna and Rico. Every minute they spend together rekindles feelings that pull them toward their disastrous past. Will letting go again be another recipe for heartbreak - or a recipe for persuasion? In Recipe for Persuasion, Sonali Dev once again takes listeners on an unforgettable adventure in this fresh, fun, and enchanting romantic comedy.
©2020 Sonali Dev (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers
Empire of Sand
Summary
A nobleman's daughter with magic in her blood. An empire built on the dreams of enslaved gods. Empire of Sand is Tasha Suri's captivating, Mughal India-inspired debut fantasy. The Amrithi are outcasts; nomads descended of desert spirits, they are coveted and persecuted throughout the Empire for the power in their blood. Mehr is the illegitimate daughter of an imperial governor and an exiled Amrithi mother she can barely remember, but whose face and magic she has inherited. When Mehr's power comes to the attention of the Emperor's most feared mystics, she must use every ounce of will, subtlety, and power she possesses to resist their cruel agenda. Should she fail, the gods themselves may awaken seeking vengeance.... Empire of Sand is a lush, dazzling fantasy novel perfect for fans of City of Brass and The Wrath & the Dawn.
©2018 Tasha Suri (P)2018 Hachette Audio
The Swiss Family Robinson
Summary
William, Elizabeth, and their four sons - Fritz, Ernest, Jack, and Franz - are on a large ship when a terrible storm strikes. The ship's crew gets to safety on lifeboats, leaving behind the Swiss family. The family, now stranded on the partially destroyed ship, finds a small island. They pack up what materials are left on the boat, which includes guns and ammunition, livestock, some provisions, and even pieces of the ship. Now the Swiss family is faced with the ultimate scenario of survival as the father, William, leads his family in a new, primitive way of life that they may never escape from.
Public Domain (P)2016 Dreamscape Media, LLC
Rift
Summary
They’ve watched us for centuries through the Rift. They’ve prepared. Invasion is inevitable. The Earth Fleet has known of the Watchers for years, unwilling to share the knowledge with humanity. Now it might be too late. Hidden away from the Fleet, one man is creating a new colony ship destined for the other side of the Rift, but he’s missing a few pieces. Three other people have varied paths to get there. Ace goes from the streets of Earth to the Fleet training facility on the moon. Flint, an ex-Fleet pilot, must decide if a job is worth his life, and Wren, imprisoned for a secret project years ago, is given hope as an unlikely ally whispers words of escape in her ear. Their journeys lead to Councilman Jarden Fairbanks, who knows of the impending invasion, and has prepared. All they can do is wait for the Rift to open once again, and see what’s on the other side. Rift joins an ensemble cast facing immeasurable obstacles. If you enjoy space battles, prison breaks, androids, and aliens, buried under a shroud of mystery, this book is for you. Try it today! A fresh new science fiction adventure from the author of the best-selling Survivors series
©2019 Nathan Hystad (P)2019 Audible, Inc.
I Killed Zoe Spanos
Summary
“The YA thriller of the summer.” (Bustle) For fans of Sadie and Serial, this gripping thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost. What happened to Zoe won’t stay buried.... When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year’s Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe’s life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected - and that she knows what happened to her. Two months later, Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna’s confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina’s podcast uncover the truth? Inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Kit Frick weaves a thrilling story of psychological suspense that twists and turns until the final word.
©2020 Kristin S. Frick. All rights reserved. (P)2020 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.
Embers of War
Summary
From BSFA award-winning author Gareth L. Powell comes the first in a new epic sci-fi trilogy exploring the legacies of war. The sentient warship Trouble Dog was built for violence, yet following a brutal war, she is disgusted by her role in a genocide. Stripped of her weaponry and seeking to atone, she joins the House of Reclamation, an organization dedicated to rescuing ships in distress. When a civilian ship goes missing in a disputed system, Trouble Dog and her new crew of loners, captained by Sal Konstanz, are sent on a rescue mission. Meanwhile, light years away, intelligence officer Ashton Childe is tasked with locating the poet, Ona Sudak, who was aboard the missing spaceship. What Childe doesn't know is that Sudak is not the person she appears to be. A straightforward rescue turns into something far more dangerous, as Trouble Dog, Konstanz, and Childe find themselves at the center of a conflict that could engulf the entire galaxy. If she is to save her crew, Trouble Dog is going to have to remember how to fight ...
©2018 Gareth L. Powell (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
A Girl Like That
Summary
In this young adult debut set in Saudi Arabia, where the law forbids romantic relationships outside of marriage, two teens fall in love, with tragic consequences. Sixteen-year-old Zarin Wadia is many things: an Indian girl, a bright and vivacious student, an orphan, a troublemaker whose romantic entanglements are the subject of endless gossip among the girls in her school. "You don't want to get involved with a girl like that," they say. So how is it that Porus, a Parsi boy, has only ever had eyes for her? And how did Zarin and Porus end up dead in a car together, crashed on the side of the highway in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia? When the religious police arrive, everything everyone thought they knew about Zarin is called into question.
©2018 Tanaz Bhathena (P)2018 Recorded Books
Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes
Summary
Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents the third book in the Hindu-based, best-selling Pandava series by Roshani Chokshi, in which Aru and her cohorts, Mini, Brynne, and Aiden - and now a pair of twins - search the Otherworld for Kalpavriksha, the wish-granting tree. War between the devas and the demons is imminent, and the Otherworld is on high alert. When intelligence from the human world reveals that the Sleeper is holding a powerful clairvoyant and her sister captive, 14-year-old Aru and her friends launch a search-and-rescue mission. The captives, a pair of twins, turn out to be the newest Pandava sisters, though, according to a prophecy, one sister is not true. During the celebration of Holi, the heavenly attendants stage a massage PR rebranding campaign to convince everyone that the Pandavas are to be trusted. As much as Aru relishes the attention, she fears that she is destined to bring destruction to her sisters, as the Sleeper has predicted. Aru believes that the only way to prove her reputation is to find the Kalpavriksha, the wish-granting tree that came out of the Ocean of Milk when it was churned. If she can reach it before the Sleeper, perhaps she can turn everything around with one wish. Careful what you wish for, Aru.... This audiobook edition includes a bonus PDF of the book's glossary. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2020 Roshani Chokshi (P)2020 Listening Library
Aru Shah and the Song of Death
Summary
Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents best-selling author Roshani Chokshi and her sequel to Aru Shah and the End of Time.
Aru is only just getting the hang of this whole Pandava thing when the Otherworld goes into full panic mode. The god of love's bow and arrow have gone missing, and the thief isn't playing Cupid. Instead, they're turning people into heartless fighting-machine zombies. If that weren't bad enough, somehow Aru gets framed as the thief. If she doesn't find the arrow by the next full moon, she'll be kicked out of the Otherworld. For good.
But, for better or worse, she won't be going it alone. Along with her soul-sister, Mini, Aru will team up with Brynne, an ultra-strong girl who knows more than she lets on, and Aiden, the boy who lives across the street and is also hiding plenty of secrets. Together they'll battle demons, travel through a glittering and dangerous serpent realm, and discover that their enemy isn't at all who they expected.
Includes a bonus PDF of the book's glossary.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2019 Roshani Chokshi (P)2019 Listening Library