Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.
Even as We Breathe  By  cover art

Even as We Breathe

By: Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle
Narrated by: Kaipo Schwab
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.19

Buy for $17.19

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Nineteen-year-old Cowney Sequoyah yearns to escape his hometown of Cherokee, North Carolina, in the heart of the Smoky Mountains. When a summer job at Asheville's luxurious Grove Park Inn and Resort brings him one step closer to escaping the hills that both cradle and suffocate him, he sees it as an opportunity. With World War II raging in Europe, the inn is the temporary home of Axis diplomats and their families, who are being held as prisoners of war. Soon, Cowney's refuge becomes a cage when the daughter of one of the residents goes missing and he finds himself accused of abduction and murder.

Even as We Breathe invokes the elements of bone, blood, and flesh as Cowney navigates difficult social, cultural, and ethnic divides. After leaving the seclusion of the Cherokee reservation, he is able to explore a future free from the consequences of his family's choices and to construct a new worldview, for a time. However, prejudice and persecution in the white world of the resort eventually compel Cowney to free himself from larger forces that hold him back as he struggles to unearth evidence of his innocence and clear his name.

©2020 The University Press of Kentucky (P)2021 Tantor

Featured Article: Listens on the identity, history, and future of the American South


The history of the American South is a complicated one. The region is marked by resilience and cultural depth in the face of adversity. From mountain folk celebrating their communities in southern Appalachia to the chefs working tirelessly to honor the South’s traditional cuisine, the culture of the South is vibrant, diverse, and wholly its own. This list presents the multifaceted identity of the South with listens that get to its heart.

More from the same

What listeners say about Even as We Breathe

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    52
  • 4 Stars
    16
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    49
  • 4 Stars
    11
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    43
  • 4 Stars
    13
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Must Read

Thought provoking! Humbling! I will never look at the Smokey Mountains and Asheville the same again.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A new perspective on Appalachian history

Well written and well performed. A unique look at a point in time when cultures collided out of fear and unknowing. Seen through the eyes of a young native boy struggling to make sense of it all.
I look forward to meeting the author when she visits Sparta, NC in September!

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautifully written

A beautifully written story about growing up Cherokee in Cherokee, North Carolina in the post war 1940’s combined with a mystery involving the historic Grove Park Inn in Asheville.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

couldn't stop listening!

I absolutely loved this book. it wrapped me in from the beginning emotionally. Annette is just phenomenal I hope to see more from her.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!