Sunil Malhotra has narrated 33 audiobooks on Listento.it by 37 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.4★ across 1,619 ratings. The most-rated is When Breath Becomes Air.
How to Win a Cosmic War
Summary
A cosmic war is a religious war. It is a battle not between armies or nations, but between the forces of good and evil, a war in which God is believed to be directly engaged on behalf of one side against the other. The hijackers who attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, thought they were fighting a cosmic war. According to award-winning writer and scholar of religions Reza Aslan, by infusing the United States War on Terror with the same kind of religiously polarizing rhetoric and Manichean worldview, it is also fighting a cosmic war, a war that can't be won. How to Win a Cosmic Waris both an in-depth study of the ideology fueling al-Qaida, the Taliban, and like-minded militants throughout the Muslim world, and an exploration of religious violence in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Surveying the global scene from Israel to Iraq and from New York to the Netherlands, Aslan argues that religion is a stronger force today than it has been in a century. At a time when religion and politics are increasingly sharing the same vocabulary and functioning in the same sphere, Aslan writes that we must strip the conflicts of our world, in particular, the War on Terror, of their religious connotations and address the earthly grievances that always lie behind the cosmic impulse. How do you win a cosmic war? By refusing to fight in one.
©2009 Reza Aslan (P)2009 Random House
Flying Lessons & Other Stories
Summary
Whether it is basketball dreams, family fiascos, first crushes, or new neighborhoods, this bold anthology - written by the best children's authors - celebrates the uniqueness and universality in all of us. In a partnership with We Need Diverse Books, industry giants Kwame Alexander, Soman Chainani, Matt de la Peña, Tim Federle, Grace Lin, Meg Medina, Walter Dean Myers, Tim Tingle, and Jacqueline Woodson join newcomer Kelly J. Baptist in a story collection that is as humorous as it is heartfelt. This impressive group of authors has earned among them every major award in children's publishing and popularity as New York Times best sellers. From these distinguished authors comes 10 distinct and vibrant stories. Table of contents and cast of narrators: "Foreword", written and read by Ellen Oh "How to Transform an Everyday Hoop Court into a Place of Higher Learning and You at the Podium" by Matt de la Peña, read by Dion Graham "The Difficult Path" by Grace Lin, read by Samantha Quan "Sol Painting, Inc.", written and read by Meg Medina "Secret Samantha" by Tim Federle, read by Julia Whelan "The Beans and Rice Chronicles of Isaiah Dunn" by Kelly J. Baptist, read by Adam Lazarre-White "Choctaw Bigfoot, Midnight in the Mountains", written and read by Tim Tingle "Main Street" by Jacqueline Woodson, read by Abigail Revasch "Flying Lessons" by Soman Chainani, read by Sunil Malhotra "Seventy-Six Dollars and Forty-Nine Cents", written and read by Kwame Alexander "Sometimes a Dream Needs a Push" by Walter Dean Myers, read by Dominic Hoffman "About We Need Diverse Books", read by Ellen Oh
©2016 Ellen Oh (P)2016 Listening Library
The Ever After of Ashwin Rao
Summary
From internationally acclaimed New Face of Fiction author Padma Viswanathan, a stunning new work set among families of those who lost loved ones in the 1985 Air India bombing, registering the unexpected reverberations of this tragedy in the lives of its survivors. A book of post-9/11 life, The Ever After demonstrates that violent politics are all-too-often homegrown in North America but ignored at our peril. In 2004, almost 20 years after the fatal bombing of Air India Flight 182 from Vancouver, two suspects are - finally - on trial for the crime. Ashwin Rao, an Indian psychologist trained in North America, comes back to do a "study of comparative grief", interviewing people who lost loved ones in the attack. What he neglects to mention is that he, too, had family members who died on the plane. Then, to his delight and fear, he becomes embroiled in the lives of one family that remains unable to escape the undertow of the tragedy. As Ashwin finds himself less and less capable of providing the objective advice this particular family seeks, his surprising emotional connection to them pushes him to face his own losses. The Ever After imagines the lasting emotional and political consequences of a real-life act of terror, confronting what we might learn to live with and what we can live without.
©2014 Padma Viswanathan (P)2017 Audible, Inc.
Chef
Summary
Kirpal Singh is riding the slow train to Kashmir. With India passing by his window, he reflects on his destination, which is also his past: a military camp to which he has not returned for 14 years. Kirpal, called Kip, is shy and not yet 20 when he arrives for the first time at General Kumar’s camp, nestled in the shadow of the Siachen Glacier. At 20,000 feet, the glacier makes a forbidding battlefield; its crevasses claimed the body of Kip’s father. Kip becomes an apprentice under the camp’s chef, Kishen, a fiery mentor who guides him toward the heady spheres of food and women. In this place of contradictions, erratic violence, and extreme temperatures, Kip learns to prepare local dishes and delicacies from around the globe. Even as months pass, Kip, a Sikh, feels secure in his allegiance to India, firmly on the right side of this interminable conflict. Then, one muggy day, a Pakistani "terrorist" with long, flowing hair is swept up on the banks of the river and changes everything. Mesmeric, mournful, and intensely lyrical, Chef is a brave and compassionate debut about hope, love, and memory set against the devastatingly beautiful, war-scarred backdrop of occupied Kashmir.
©2008 and 2010 Jaspreet Singh (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Promise
Summary
From the lost journals of the New York Times best-selling Seven Wonders series comes the story of how Atlantis came to rest at the bottom of the sea. Follow the threads of history back to ancient times. Two Atlantean princes, Karai and Massarym, obsessed with power and terrified of the mysterious Loculi, turned against each other in a bitter rivalry. With the future of the world at stake and nowhere to turn for guidance, the 14-year-old brothers chose fear over trust, deception over truth, and violence over brotherhood, and they changed the course of history forever. In this final installment of the Seven Wonders Journals, dive into the heart of the mystery that started it all before the adventure concludes in Seven Wonders: The Legend of the Rift, the fifth and final book in the New York Times best-selling adventure series by Peter Lerangis, author of hundreds of books, including three titles in the 39 Clues series.
©2016 Peter Lerangis (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers
First, They Erased Our Name
Summary
“I am three years old and will have to grow up with the hostility of others. I am already an outlaw in my own country, an outlaw in the world. I am three years old, and I don’t yet know that I am stateless.” Habiburahman was born in 1979 and raised in a small village in western Burma. When he was three years old, the country’s military leader declared that his people, the Rohingya, were not one of the 135 recognized ethnic groups that formed the eight “national races.” He was left stateless in his own country. Since 1982, millions of Rohingya have had to flee their homes as a result of extreme prejudice and persecution. In 2016 and 2017, the government intensified the process of ethnic cleansing, and over 700,000 Rohingya people were forced to cross the border into Bangladesh. Here, for the first time, a Rohingya speaks up to expose the truth behind this global humanitarian crisis. Through the eyes of a child, we learn about the historic persecution of the Rohingya people and witness the violence Habiburahman endured throughout his life until he escaped the country in 2000. First, They Erased Our Name is an urgent, moving memoir about what it feels like to be repressed in one’s own country and a refugee in others. It gives voice to the voiceless.
©2018 by Habiburahman and Sophie Ansel. Translation © 2019 by Andrea Reece (P)2019 Blackstone Publishing
Watched
Summary
Marina Budhos' extraordinary and timely novel examines what it's like to grow up under surveillance, something many Americans experience and most Muslim Americans know. Naeem is far from the model teen. Moving fast in his immigrant neighborhood in Queens is the only way he can outrun the eyes of his hardworking Bangladeshi parents and their gossipy neighbors. Even worse, they're not the only ones watching. Cameras on poles. Mosques infiltrated. Everyone knows: Be careful what you say and who you say it to. Anyone might be a watcher. Naeem thinks he can charm his way through anything - until his mistakes catch up with him, and the cops offer a dark deal. Naeem sees a way to be a hero - a protector - like the guys in his brother's comic books. Yet what is a hero? What is a traitor? And where does Naeem belong? Acclaimed author Marina Budhos delivers a riveting story that's as vivid and involving as today's headlines.
©2016 Marina Budhos (P)2016 Listening Library
The Great Treehouse War
Summary
Kids vs. parents! An epic treehouse sleepover! An awesome group of friends! An exciting new book from National Book Award finalist Lisa Graff. Winnie’s last day of fourth grade ended with a pretty life-changing surprise. That was the day Winnie’s parents got divorced, the day they decided that Winnie would live three days a week with each of them and spend Wednesdays by herself in a treehouse smack between their houses, to divide her time perfectly evenly between them. It was the day Winnie’s seed of frustration with her parents was planted, a seed that grew and grew until it felt like it was as big as a tree itself. By the end of fifth grade, Winnie decides that the only way to change things is to barricade herself in her treehouse until her parents come to their senses - and her friends decide to join her. It’s kids versus grown-ups, and no one wants to back down first. But with ten kids in one treehouse, all with their own demands, Winnie discovers that things can get pretty complicated pretty fast! Even if they are having the most epic slumber party ever. In the newest novel by beloved National Book Award finalist Lisa Graff, kids have turned the tables on their parents, and all the rules have been tossed out the window. But does Winnie have what it takes to hold her ground and keep everyone happy? This story, with a pitch-perfect middle grade voice and zany yet poignant situation, is perfect for fans of Sharon Creech, Louis Sachar, and Jack Gantos. Featuring Ariana Delawari as Winnie, alongside a full cast of narrators: Michael Crouch, as Lyle Robbie Daymond, as Joey Lauren Fortgang, as Jolee Felicia Leicht, as Tabitha Sunil Malhotra, as Aayush Kathleen McInerney, as Greta Cassandra Morris, as Squizzy Tara Sands, as Brogan and Logan and also featuring an ensemble cast
©2017 Lisa Graff (P)2017 Listening Library
Tiger Boy
Summary
"One of the new tiger cubs has escaped from the reserve!" When a tiger cub escapes from a nature reserve near Neel's island village, the rangers and villagers hurry to find her before the cub's anxious mother follows suit and endangers them all. Mr. Gupta, a rich newcomer to the island, is also searching - he wants to sell the cub's body parts on the black market. Neel and his sister, Rupa, resolve to find the cub first and bring her back to the reserve where she belongs. The hunt for the cub interrupts Neel's preparations for an exam to win a prestigious scholarship at a boarding school far from home. Neel doesn't mind - he dreads the exam and would rather stay on his beloved island in the Sunderbans of West Bengal with his family and friends. But through his encounter with the cub, Neil learns that sometimes you have to take risks to preserve what you love. And sometimes you have to sacrifice the present for the chance to improve the future. Awards & Honors Notable Books for a Global Society NCTE Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction (Honorable Mention) CBC-NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People A Junior Library Guild Selection CCBC Choices 2016 South Asia Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature
©2015 Mitali Perkins (P)2018 Listening Library
East, West
Summary
A rickshaw driver dreams of being a Bombay movie star; Indian diplomats, who as childhood friends hatched Star Trek fantasies, must boldly go into a hidden universe of conspiracy and violence; and Hamlet's jester is caught up in murderous intrigues. In Rushdie's hybrid world, an Indian guru can be a redheaded Welshman, while Christopher Columbus is an immigrant, dreaming of Western glory. Rushdie allows himself, like his characters, to be pulled now in one direction, then in another. Yet he remains a writer who insists on our cultural complexity; who, rising beyond ideology, refuses to choose between East and West and embraces the world.
©1994 Salman Rushdie (P)2016 Recorded Books
The Call to Unite
Summary
From some of our most prominent spiritual and religious leaders, poets and thinkers, singers and writers, a book of wisdom to light our way in dark times. At the start of 2020, in what felt already like an age of disorder, our world faced one of the gravest global challenges in a century. COVID-19 raced around the earth, and chaos erupted. Yet in the midst of this crisis, billions of human beings responded with love. Across the globe, people sought to connect, whether in person from a socially distant six feet or via a screen from 10,000 miles away. In that moment, Tim Shriver saw an opportunity for those hungry for community to answer a call to heal, a call to hope, a call to unite. He asked monks and nuns, artists and activists, nurses and doctors, ex-presidents and ex-cons to come together to share messages of inspiration, transformation, and love. This book captures the spirit of that 24-hour event. Featuring stories and insights from Bishop TD Jakes, Elizabeth Gilbert, Van Jones, Amy Grant, Dr. Rheeda Walker, Pastor Rick Warren, Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Jewel, Deepak Chopra, and many others, The Call to Unite offers listeners a book of wisdom to turn to in hard times - filled with prayers, poems, spiritual insights, and lessons to live by that will stand the test of time. Those seeking affirmation, solace, and inspiration need only look inside for guidance in finding the light in any crisis. Only in embracing each other can we amplify the love that creates our global community. Only in coming together can we be our happiest, and our best. Read by a full cast of narrators: Mark Bramhall, N’Jamah Camara, Cassandra Campbell, Danny Campbell, Amanda Carlin, Feodor Chin, Kevin R. Free, Deepti Gupta, Dominic Hoffman, Ann Marie Lee, John Lee, Elizabeth Liang, Stephen Mendel, Robin Miles, Sunil Malhotra, Desmond Manny, Arthur Morey, Soneela Nankani, Danny Pardo, Lisa Renee Pitts, Allyson Ryan, Tom Rosshirt, Fred Sanders, Tara Sands, Elliot Schiff, Maria Shriver, Tim Shriver, and Dan Woren * This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF of photographs and acknowledgments. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2021 Tim Shriver (P)2021 Penguin Audio
Members Only
Summary
First the white members of Raj Bhatt’s posh tennis club call him racist. Then his life falls apart. Along the way, he wonders: Where does he, a brown man, belong in America? Raj Bhatt is often unsure of where he belongs. Having moved to America from Bombay as a child, he knew few Indian kids. Now middle-aged, he lives mostly happily in California, with a job at a university. Still, his white wife seems to fit in better than he does at times, especially at their tennis club, a place he’s cautiously come to love. But it’s there that, in one week, his life unravels. It begins at a meeting for potential new members: Raj thrills to find an African-American couple on the list; he dreams of a more diverse club. But in an effort to connect, he makes a racist joke. The committee turns on him, no matter the years of prejudice he’s put up with. And worse still, he soon finds his job is in jeopardy after a group of students report him as a reverse racist, thanks to his alleged “anti-Western bias”. Heartfelt, humorous, and hard-hitting, Members Only explores what membership and belonging mean, as Raj navigates the complicated space between Black and white America. Narrated by Sunil Malhotra. AudioFile Earphones Award Winner.
©2020 Sameer Pandya (P)2020 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
The Heart Is a Shifting Sea
Summary
In the vein of Behind the Beautiful Forevers, an intimate, deeply reported and revelatory examination of love, marriage, and the state of modern India - as witnessed through the lives of three very different couples in today's Mumbai. In 21st-century India, tradition is colliding with Western culture, a clash that touches the lives of everyday Indians from the wealthiest to the poorest. While ethnicity, class, and religion are influencing the nation's development, so too are pop culture and technology - an uneasy fusion whose impact is most evident in the institution of marriage. The Heart Is a Shifting Sea introduces three couples whose relationships illuminate these sweeping cultural shifts in dramatic ways: Veer and Maya, a forward-thinking professional couple whose union is tested by Maya's desire for independence; Shahzad and Sabeena, whose desperation for a child becomes entwined with the changing face of Islam; and Ashok and Parvati, whose arranged marriage, made possible by an online matchmaker, blossoms into true love. Though these three middle-class couples are at different stages in their lives and come from diverse religious backgrounds, their stories build on one another to present a layered, nuanced, and fascinating mosaic of the universal challenges, possibilities, and promise of matrimony in its present state. Elizabeth Flock has observed the evolving state of India from inside Mumbai, its largest metropolis. She spent close to a decade getting to know these couples - listening to their stories and living in their homes, where she was privy to countless moments of marital joy, inevitable frustration, dramatic upheaval, and whispered confessions and secrets. The result is a phenomenal feat of reportage that is both an enthralling portrait of a nation in the midst of transition and an unforgettable look at the universal mysteries of love and marriage that connect us all.
©2018 Elizabeth Flock (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers