When We Were Birds
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When We Were Birds
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Narrated by:
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Sydney Darius
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Wendell Manwarren
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
Mesmerising, mythic and timeless - the most unmissable debut novel of 2022 - for fans of Arundhati Roy, Toni Morrison and Monique Roffey.
Darwin is a down-on-his-luck gravedigger, newly arrived in the Trinidadian city of Port Angeles to seek his fortune, young and beautiful and lost. Estranged from his mother and the Rastafari faith she taught him, he is convinced that the father he never met may be waiting for him somewhere amid these bustling streets.
Meanwhile in an old house on a hill, where the city meets the rainforest, Yejide's mother is dying. And she is leaving behind a legacy that now passes to Yejide: the power to talk to the dead. The women of Yejide's family are human but also not - descended from corbeau, the black birds that fly east at sunset, taking with them the souls of the dead.
Darwin and Yejide both have something that the other needs. Their destinies are intertwined, and they will find one another in the sprawling, ancient cemetery at the heart of the island, where trouble is brewing....
Rich with magic and wisdom, When We Were Birds is an exuberant, incantatory masterpiece that conjures and mesmerises on every line. Ayanna Lloyd Banwo weaves an unforgettable story of loss and renewal, darkness and light; a triumphant reckoning with a grief that runs back generations and a defiant, joyful affirmation of hope.
©2022 Ayanna Lloyd Banwo (P)2022 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"Exceptional. The originality of its premise, the power and beauty of its prose, the depth of its explorations of what it means to love and be loved." (Jacob Ross, author of Black Rain Falling)
"Combining the richness of myth with razor-sharp observation of contemporary life, When We Were Birds marks the emergence of a distinctive and powerful voice." (Pat Barker, author of The Silence of the Girls)
"Ayanna Lloyd Banwo is a rising literary star from a region which gave the world three Nobel Laureates in literature. She conjures old magic and yet she is a strong, new voice." (Monique Roffey, author of The Mermaid of Black Conch)
What listeners say about When We Were Birds
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-01-24
A great story about living
The narration was great! I think it is difficult job to tell such a complex story as simply as the author did and it was done well. It is a story about loyalty and family and living (even with so much talk about death). I enjoyed it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Liv
- 18-05-23
Just beautiful!
My favourite read for a long, long time. The language was so poetic and emotive and the characters so vivid that I feel like I will miss them and this world. Such a stunning depiction of the rawness of human experience and the parts of it we often seek to forget or push away were made beautiful.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Alison
- 08-03-22
Fantastic!
I loved this book. The story telling made it all the more enjoyable. I could see the whole story through the characters.
Thoroughly enjoyed it!
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- ST
- 04-03-22
Comforting, entertaining, beautiful...
bright, dark, enlightening, thoughtful and thought provoking. A tale about death &/ the dead, in which love and and life are the vehicle.
Narration is a large part of the beauty of this story. The expression of the dialogue felt very honest and I hope the author is as impressed.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Robert C.
- 26-04-24
Wonderful in every respect!
This book took a hold of me like no book has done since Gabriel García Márquez as if merged with a Marc Chagall masterpiece. The fact it is a debut is incredible. I feel grateful to have come upon it!
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- Droltharris
- 20-03-22
Exquisite story expertly told.
Epic and intimate debut novel narrated by a stellar cast including living legend Wendell Manwarren. The details are so vivid and well-communicated that I felt I was at home in Trinidad. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
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- Mandisa
- 03-04-22
Amazing read
Beautiful story. Performances were very authentic, very rare to hear a true accent which was delivered with this audio version, with emotion and authenticity. Bravo!
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- Rachael Murphy
- 17-08-22
surprising
not what just expected at all but I loved it. Definitely worth listening to
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- Claudine Ogilvie
- 28-04-22
like listening to a friend
it felt so good to hear a book by a Trinidadian author read in Trinidadian accents. It made the story more real somehow. The story itself was beautiful; the right mix of folklore, and romance, and sadness and suspense.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 10-08-22
Loved it!
The storyline was well constructed. Even though there is significant focus on their extraordinary experiences the characters were so well developed that I felt like I knew or had met someone like them at some point in life. Ayanna Lloyd Banwo struck the perfect balance because ultimately, their challeneges and experiences were very relatable. I especially enjoyed the delivery of proper Trini dialect by the narrators. Really did not want this book to end!
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