Brothers, Sisters, Strangers cover art

Brothers, Sisters, Strangers

Sibling Estrangement and the Road to Reconciliation

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Brothers, Sisters, Strangers

By: Fern Schumer Chapman
Narrated by: Gabra Zackman, Fred Sanders
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

 A warm, empathetic guide to understanding, coping with, and healing from the unique pain of sibling estrangement

"Whenever I tell people that I am working on a book about sibling estrangement, they sit up a little straighter and lean in, as if I've tapped into a dark secret."

Fern Schumer Chapman understands the pain of sibling estrangement firsthand. For the better part of forty years, she had nearly no relationship with her only brother, despite many attempts at reconnection. Her grief and shame were devastating and isolating. But when she tried to turn to others for help, she found that a profound stigma still surrounded estrangement, and that very little statistical and psychological research existed to help her better understand the rift that had broken up her family. So she decided to conduct her own research, interviewing psychologists and estranged siblings as well as recording the extraordinary story of her own rift with her brother--and subsequent reconciliation.

Brothers, Sisters, Strangers is the result--a thoughtfully researched memoir that illuminates both the author's own story and the greater phenomenon of estrangement. Chapman helps readers work through the challenges of rebuilding a sibling relationship that seems damaged beyond repair, as well as understand when estrangement is the best option. It is at once a detailed framework for understanding sibling estrangement, a beacon of solidarity and comfort for the estranged, and a moving memoir about family trauma, addiction, grief, and recovery. Communication & Social Skills Conflict Resolution Parenting & Families Personal Development Relationships

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Shadow Daughter cover art
But It’s Your Family... cover art
Special cover art
Breaking the Chains of Transgenerational Trauma cover art
Daughters Betrayed by Their Mothers cover art
They Called Us Exceptional cover art
Surviving and Thriving in Stepfamily Relationships cover art
The Unspeakable Loss cover art
The Mother Dance cover art
After the Tears cover art
Good Relations cover art
To Have and to Hold cover art
Done with the Crying cover art
Running on Empty cover art
Will I Ever Be Good Enough? cover art
Where to Draw the Line cover art

Critic reviews

“Deeply moving . . . The author's vulnerability turns what could have been a clinical look at family dysfunction into a sensitive, compassionate narrative. Even cynics will find hope in this story of redemption.”
—Publishers Weekly

“A primer in mending familial fences blended with an affecting memoir.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“A terrific, compassionate, much-needed book about broken family relationships and the path to healing.”
—Dr. Wendy Mogel, New York Times bestselling author of The Blessing of a Skinned Knee

“Fern Schumer Chapman is a superb writer. In this stunning family memoir, she fearlessly probes the forty-year estrangement from her brother and chronicles their uneasy road to reconciliation. Along the way, she deftly weaves in pertinent social science research, capturing the voices and insights of hundreds of people suffering from sibling alienation. Brothers, Sisters, Strangers deserves to be read and discussed for years to come.”
—James B. Lieber, Pulitzer Prize-nominated author of Friendly Takeover

“No better book presents the subject of sibling estrangement in such a far-reaching, personal, and practical way. A must-read!”
—Ali-John Chaudhary, psychotherapist
All stars
Most relevant
I have listened to this book twice already and will probably listen to it several more times. It has been my anchor of hope and my solace. I have been painfully separated from my sister for a few years now and I long to find a way back. There was a lot of good advice and resources. The stories were comforting too and I could relate to a lot of it. There were things shared that I have never heard before that I thought I was alone in experiencing. Now I know that I am completely normal and just the same as everybody else experiencing estrangement. It is a painful process.

Amazing book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.