The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Phillippe Sendker

This title will be released on 31 January, 2012.

A poignant and inspirational love story set in Burma, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats spans the decades between the 1950s and the present.  When a successful New York lawyer suddenly disappears without a trace, neither his wife nor his daughter Julia has any idea where he might be…until they find a love letter he wrote many years ago, to a Burmese woman they have never heard of. Intent on solving the mystery and coming to terms with her father’s past, Julia decides to travel to the village where the woman lived. There she uncovers a tale of unimaginable hardship, resilience, and passion that will reaffirm the reader’s belief in the power of love to move mountains.

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I couldn't put this book down.  I read it in just a day or two and I found it to be a beautiful story lovingly told by a talented writer.  It is magical and poignant; an amazing, achingly sublime love story.  It is a tale of faithfulness, perseverance,  hope and trust.  When have you ever loved someone enough to let them go without hatred or malice?  Have you ever felt that kind of deep emotion that rings true thorough out your life despite the circumstances?  Funny how people live lives that they know they were not meant to live simply because it is convenient or the right thing to do.  As I read this book my heart ached for the characters but it ached also for myself. There is something in this book that will touch you profoundly, spur you onto greater heights.  I know this because one can not read this tale without thinking about one's own life and the trajectory it is taking them on.  Are you really living how you want, with whom you want...are you really honoring your soul or are you only marking time until some later date?  Perhaps we could all learn the art of hearing heartbeats, beginning with listening to our own.

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Excerpt

December in Kalaw is a cold month. The sky is blue and cloudless. The sun wanders from one side of the horizon to the other, but no longer climbs high enough to generate any real warmth. The air is clear and fresh, and only the most sensitive people can still detect any trace of the heavy, sweet scent of the tropical rainy season, when the clouds hang low over the village and the valley, and the water falls unchecked from the skies as if to slake a parched world’s thirst. The rainy season is hot and steamy. The market reeks of rotting meat, while heavy black flies settle on the entrails and skulls of sheep and cattle. The earth itself seems to perspire. Worms and insects crawl out of its pores. Innocent rills turn to rushing torrents that devour careless piglets, lambs, or children, only to disgorge them, lifeless, in the valley below.
   But December promises the people of Kalaw a respite from all of this.  December promises cold nights and mercifully cool days. December, thought Mya Mya, is a hypocrite.
   She was sitting on a wooden stool in front of her house looking out over the fields and the valley to the hilltops in the distance. The air was so clear that she felt she was looking through a spyglass to the ends of the earth. She did not trust the weather. Although she could not remember ever in her life having seen a cloud in a December sky, she would not rule out the possibility of a sudden downpour. Or of a typhoon even if not a single one in living memory had found its way from the Bay of Bengal into the mountains around Kalaw. It was not impossible. As long as there were typhoons anywhere, one might well devastate Mya Mya’s native soil. Or the earth might quake. Even, or perhaps especially, on a day like today, when nothing foreshadowed catastrophe. Complacency was treacherous, confidence a luxury that Mya Mya could not afford. That much she knew at the bottom of her heart. For her there would be neither peace nor rest. Not in this world. Not in her life.

 

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Jan-Philipp Sendker, born in Hamburg in 1960, was the American correspondent for Stern from 1990 to 1995, and its Asian correspondent from 1995 to 1999. In 2000 he published Cracks in the Great Wall, a nonfiction book about China. The Art of Hearing Heartbeats is his first novel. He lives in Berlin with his family.

* I received a free copy from the publisher for purposes of review. I was in no way obligated to write a review much less a favorable one. The opinions stated herein are all my own.

The Monster in the Hollows (Wingfeather Saga) - Andrew Peterson

"It is an ancient need to be told stories. But the story needs a great storyteller."

Purchase Here

 

 Book Three of The Wingfeather Saga

Janner Wingfeather's father was the High King of Anniera. But his father is gone. The kingdom has fallen. The royal family is on the run, and the Fang armies of Gnag the Nameless are close behind.

Janner and his family hope to find refuge in the last safe place in the world: the Green Hollows--a land of warriors feared even by Fangs of Dang. But there's a big problem. Janner's little brother-heir to the throne of Anniera-has grown a tail. And gray fur. Not to mention two pointed ears and long, dangerous fangs. To the suspicious folk of the Green Hollows he looks like a monster.

But Janner knows better. His brother isn't as scary as he looks. He's perfectly harmless.

Or is he?

Join the Wingfeathers on an adventure filled with mystery, betrayal, and sneakery in a land of tasty fruits. There's a monster on the loose and the truth lurks in the shadows. 

***

Andrew Peterson is a master wordsmith.  A storyteller extraordinaire.  His books make all of us that read his words better people.  He spins a yarn effortlessly, brilliantly but that is not what he does best.  What he does best is remind us that there is more to us than us.  He reminds us that our Lord and Maker is our one true gift, he never leaves or deviates from that one primary, central truth.  

Lest one think that this is simply just another Christian fantasy novel please hear me when I say that 'The Wingfeather Saga' is no more a trite trio of books than the 'The Lord of the Rings' was simply another tale of elves and wizards.  Andrew Peterson deserves his place among the great authors that came before...Tolkien, Lewis.  If you have ever lamented the fact that you were too young to have witnessed first hand the birth of a classic novel then I suggest you begin reading Andrew Peterson post haste, for here in this collected work we have true artistry, a classic tale destined to be read and reread for generations to come.  How blessed we are to have a writer like Peterson among our midst.

'The Monster in the Hollows' is a book you will want to read with your children if you have them.  If not, then it is a book that you will simply want to read.  I feel compelled to warn you before hand that once you pick up this book you will have a very hard time putting it down.  Expect long nights, missed appointments and for your answering machine to fill up.  Feed your pets ahead of time and fill your coffee cup because you are in for a fantastic journey.

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Andrew Peterson

Hey, folks. If you're just discovering me or any of my work, it can be a little confusing because there are several facets to it. Here's the rundown:
* I write songs. I also record them to these cool things called CDs and put on concerts around the country. (And beyond! To my great delight, I get to play in Europe every year or so.)
* I write books. Right now I'm three books into a fantasy series for young readers. It's called the Wingfeather Saga. I just published book three (of four), in May of 2011. I also illustrated some of the pictures. (WingfeatherSaga.com)
* I'm the proprietor of the Rabbit Room., a community of songwriters, authors, and artists interested in storytelling, faith, and fellowship. We have a yearly conference called Hutchmoot, which is as awesome as it sounds. (Hutchmoot.com)
* I'm a proud member of the Square Peg Alliance, a happy band of singer/songwriters who write together, tour together, and eat together. (SquarePegAlliance.com)
* I've been married for fifteen years to Jamie, and we have three sweet children: Aedan (12), Asher (11), and Skye (8). We live in a magical place we call the Warren, just south of Nashville.
The common thread in all this is my love for Christ and his Kingdom, my belief in the power of story and art, and my need for family and community. If I had to boil it all down, I'd say this: I want to use my gifts to tell the truth, and to tell it as beautifully as I can.


* I received an advance copy from the publisher for purposes of review. I was in no way obligated to write a review much less a favorable one. The opinions stated herein are all my own.