A Walk Across the Sun

By: Corban Addison

Narrated by: Soneela Nankani

Length: 15 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Corban Addison’s riveting suspense debut pulls back the veil on one of the most profound human rights issues of our day: human trafficking. After their coastal town in India is wiped out by a tsunami, two sisters are abducted and sold into the global underground sex trade. Meanwhile, half a world away, a D.C. attorney makes it his life’s work to end this dehumanizing practice.

©2012 Regulus Books, LLC (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

Incredible story

What did you love best about A Walk Across the Sun?

It is based on actual facts and very interesting.

What did you like best about this story?

This story flowed really well and kept my interest at all times

What about Soneela Nankani’s performance did you like?

She was amazing! Her voice was calming and interesting. Her character changes were amazing. Her accents were as authentic as can be.

If you could take any character from A Walk Across the Sun out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Thomas. He was smart, compassionate and determined.

Any additional comments?

I rarely write reviews, but this book really got my attention. It was factual and entertaining. I really enjoyed the story and loved the reader!

I'm biased but...

TL;DR this is a great book if you're interested in/curious about human trafficking and/or India.

So a little background: I live in the DC area and I aspire to work for international nonprofits. The cause I have dedicated myself to up to this point has been human trafficking. Before I fell into that work, I became enamored with India. Hence, this book appealed to me for obvious reasons and I was bound to like it from the outset if it wasn't abysmal.
With a few exceptions, the writing style is nothing masterful or particularly elegant, almost reminiscent of YA, but the storyline is captivating and moving. I became engaged in both the characters and plot. I appreciate that the breadth of its coverage of India and human trafficking is so broad. From North to South and rural to urban India, and sex to labor and Eastern European to South Asian trafficking.
The narrator was best at non-American accents in my opinion, and did a pretty good job overall. She was deifntiely intentional about, and I presume accurate with, her pronunciation.
Overall, it's not exactly an easy or summer read (in terms of topics), but it is important. Worth checking out if you have the time, and I hope it captivates you like it captivated me.

Spellbinding

This book had me from the first paragraph. After a tsunami wipes out their home and family, two young girls are sucked into the underworld of human trafficking. The insights into how this world operates is gripping as are their stories. I chose this book because I am a fan of this narrator, and she did not disappoint, again speaking in Hindi, Russian, French, American, and Ukranian accents as she protrayed the different characters in this tale of darkness. I suspect the author may have been imagining himself as the hero of this tale, and I accept that. I think it was well-research, well-presented fiction, and I enjoyed it very much, one day walking an extra three miles while listening because I couldn't turn it off.

good

Not as good as Dark Waters. love Corbin Addison. keep on writing. value laden stuff.

Compelling debut novel

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Human trafficking is a well-known philanthropic cause, but this novel gives names and voices and faces to many who are caught in it. It is a touching, tragic read.

What about Soneela Nankani’s performance did you like?

She had a listenable voice, and did wonderful slight accents. Occasionally she would pause in a funny spot, but her performance was oetherwise wonderful!

Any additional comments?

Ioyed this book - as much as one can. Perhaps it does rely a little too much on coincidence, but sometimes life works that way. A worthwhile read. I greatly anticipate Addison's second novel, "The Garden of Burning Sand."

Wonderful

This is the best book I have read in the last 5 years. Heartbreaking and gripping.

captivating!

Very captivating from the beginning but drags at the end when Sita is being rescued from her captors.

Fiction Based on Truths

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. This book was loosely based on actual investigations that International Justice Mission worked on. Though the story in itself is created, there are a lot of truths behind what had happened in this book. I really love when people do creative things to share a problem that exists.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Walk Across the Sun?

I really liked that there are certain things that happen in the main character's life that lead him on a journey he may not have been willing to take before, which changes his life and the lives of others forever.

What does Soneela Nankani bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The author can do accents so well from Indian, Scottish, French, Russian, etc. . .it is all in this book. She has skills.

If you could take any character from A Walk Across the Sun out to dinner, who would it be and why?

I would love to talk to Priya. I want to get inside her head and understand her better. I feel she was one of the most confusing characters.

Any additional comments?

If you want to learn about how human trafficking investigations may work, I think this story is pretty accurate from what I have learned in my ten years of research. It is not always fast, easy, or successful.

One of the best books I read recently

What did you love best about A Walk Across the Sun?

The story takes you once you start reading and you just really want to know what is gonna happen next.

Soneela takes her reading and characters seriously

As the only person in my book club who listens to audio, I am privileged to have the extra dimension of "READER" which I cannot share with them in my review. I can and often do, share a little of the audio to highlight a portion of the book I particularly enjoy. This reader, with the multitide of characters and accents, is able to portray these people and their accents authentically to help me distinguish who is who.

This book's character convergence does not feel contrived. The subject matter is dealt with three-dimensionally. Only the children are painted as angels on the planet...

Thumbs up.