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Burnt Shadows

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Burnt Shadows

By: Kamila Shamsie
Narrated by: Jane McDowell
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About this listen

 In a prison cell in the US, a man stands trembling, naked, fearfully waiting to be shipped to Guantánamo Bay. How did it come to this? he wonders.

August 9th, 1945, Nagasaki. Hiroko Tanaka takes in the view of the terraced slopes leading up to the sky. Wrapped in a kimono with three black cranes swooping across the back, she is twenty-one and in love with the man she is to marry.

In a split second, the world turns white. In the next, it explodes with the sound of fire and the horror of realisation. In the numbing aftermath of a bomb that obliterates everything she has known, all that remains are the bird-shaped burns on her back, an indelible reminder of the world she has lost. In search of new beginnings, she travels to Delhi two years later....

©2009 Kamila Shamsie (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Contemporary Fiction Fiction Genre Fiction

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All stars
Most relevant
Much to like in this book, but ultimately I didn't find the character of Hiroko Tanaka truly three dimensional, nor credible.

I also found the narration a little hard-going with the interchange between Indian and Japanese accented English both stereo-typical and jarring.

Didn't really work for me

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I liked the story, but the narrator did a poor job with the accents (Urdu and Japanese sound alike), and Pakistani place names and words are mispronounced throughout. A little research would have helped. Still enjoyed the story overall though.

Good story, poor job with accents

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The story spans a number of countries and captures international politics and the complexities of inter-cultural and inter-generational relationships. It's a beautifully written book (beautifully read by Jan McDowell). I never wanted to it to end, and the characters have stayed with me long after.

A captivating story, beautifully read.

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Kudos to Jane McDowell for her reading, excellent.

The story is one that kept me enchanted for the 12 hours I was listening to it. At times i had to pause for fear of my reaction in a public space . Highly recommended audiobook.

A book full of soul read beautifully

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A really believable, compelling story, written from unusual and interesting perspectives. I found the narrators American accent really annoying as it was so clearly laboured and fake, but otherwise enjoyed the narration.

A different perspective

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