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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
Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Medical

What listeners say about The Covenant of Water

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A brilliant masterpiece

My sister told me to take my time and not be in a hurry to finish this book. But I couldn't help myself. I now feel empty. I lived with big Ammichi and Digby and Joppan and phillipos for so many days, I fell in love with them.
what a ride it's been. an incredible roller coaster of a book.
only later did I realise that this is the same author who wrote Cutting for Stone, another favourite of mine from a long time ago.
Brilliant, moving and unputdownable.

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Three cheers to the silver and blue.

As a alumnus of CMC and having many mallu friends, enjoyed this outstanding book. the narration was superb. the ending was really unexpected and wonderfully done.

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A must read..

If you love books then you are in for a treat. Thank you Mr Varghese for blessing us with such a beautiful writing. Thank you for telling us a tale of some normal human beings through some of their extraordinary times. 🙏

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One of the best book I ever read

I love they way stories flows in parallel and then merge together so smoothly. I fell in love with each of the character, I cried when there was a loss, my jaw was stuck in awe (litterly) while listening to these stories.
I am glad i came across thjs book.
Amazing Story !!

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Big ammacchhi is nothing but love 💖

This book opened my stubborn unlovable eyes to my parents and changed me entirely.

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A book that transports you to a different era

Loved it.... an Inter-generational story which captures your soul....the narration was brilliant.... the accents were spot on.

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The story is really great

The different incidents in the book are written very well and it transports you to a different world. The characters are well developed and their development throughout the story is remarkable.

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The narration and the characters

I loved the narration and the story. Especially that of Big Ammachi. The story got a bit dull towards the middle but nonetheless i really loved the characters

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Must Listen

A well depicted story of 3 generations flowing seamlessly through the times. Opens a portal to Travancore of pre-independent India.

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this will be one of the top five best books for me for life

Stunning narrative, beautiful story and characters that shall stay with you for a very long time.
Once in a lifetime story and 29 hours is for the first time a little time with them.
The book is pure heart and soul

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