The Chicken Sisters

By: KJ Dell'Antonia

Narrated by: Xe Sands, Cassandra Campbell

Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Instant New York Times Best Seller

A Reese's Book Club Pick

"A charming, hilarious, feel-good story about the kind of bonds and rivalries only sisters can share. Also, a great present for your sister for the holidays!!" (Reese Witherspoon)

Three generations. Two chicken shacks. One recipe for disaster.

In tiny Merinac, Kansas, Chicken Mimi's and Chicken Frannie's have spent a century vying to serve up the best fried chicken in the state - and the legendary feud between their respective owners, the Moores and the Pogociellos, has lasted just as long. No one feels the impact more than 35-year-old widow Amanda Moore, who grew up working for her mom at Mimi's before scandalously marrying Frank Pogociello and changing sides to work at Frannie's. Tired of being caught in the middle, Amanda sends an SOS to Food Wars, the reality TV restaurant competition that promises $100,000 to the winner. But in doing so, she launches both families out of the frying pan and directly into the fire....

The last thing Brooklyn-based organizational guru Mae Moore, Amanda's sister, wants is to go home to Kansas. But when her career implodes, helping the fading Mimi's look good on Food Wars becomes Mae's best chance to reclaim the limelight - even if doing so pits her against Amanda and Frannie's. Yet when family secrets become public knowledge, the sisters must choose: Will they fight with each other, or for their heritage?

©2020 KJ Dell'Antonia (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

A January 2021 Country Living Front Porch Book Club Pick

“Dell’Antonia writes convincingly and sympathetically about complicated family relationships, giving Mae and Amanda each relatable flaws. The Food Wars scenes are a fun peek behind the curtain of the reality TV world, and the small-town warmth of Merinac is comfortingly quirky. A charming and satisfying story about family bonds that will make meat eaters everywhere crave fried chicken.” (Kirkus Reviews) 

"The Chicken Sisters is a pitch-perfect book with which to begin the New Year, when the spirit of starting anew and putting aside baggage (no matter how many centuries old it may be!), is exactly what we need. Well, that and a plate of fried chicken, of course." (Country Living)

“A charming first novel about family, regrets, and second chances. Dell’Antonia deftly deals with issues of mental illness, marriage troubles, and dreams deferred, all the while telling a funny satire of reality TV. An utter delight from start to finish." (Booklist, starred review) 

Headache

This was 10 hours of sisters fighting and scheming. It became hard to like any of the main characters. And to be honest... I thought it could have ended about three times before it did.

not worth it

I hate books that switch from one character to another chapter by chapter. I find it distracting and feel like it is lazy writing. Mae's children were annoying. the story was impossible to follow. I really hated it

Amanda is the best!

my favorite character was Amanda. I understood all of how she felt, and so many aspects of her are things I feel and experience.

spoilers below:
.
.
.
Although the whole book could have been solved by family communicating, sometimes this kinda stuff happens. Amanda is one of those more timid people like me that, when riled up, does literally everything she normally wouldn't even think of and jump to conclusions. I love all her Chicken art stories, and actually feel inspired to perhaps add a chicken to my next drawing. so cute.

I loved the book so much I went to go buy it from the market. such a good book.

Relatable Story

Slow start but then you get into the story. You can really relate to the characters and the good old fashioned sibling rivalry. Enjoyed it.

Captures relationship complexity

The story is solid, but what I enjoyed most was that the complexities of ongoing conflict are captured fairly well for a more casual read. I liked the voice actor for Amanda, but the voice of Mae didn’t seem to fit as well. It wasn’t bad, just not as strong.

Fun, light read

Great narrator! I felt like I knew what was going to happen at the end, and I did.

Captivating and Wholesome

This book was captivating from beginning to end. All families have secrets with cobwebs. We all have sibling troubled times. This novel brought it all lovingly together. The narrators were wonderful. This is the story of sisters and mothers who love fiercely. I loved this book of love and family issues. It is truly a winner!

A delicious, addictive read

The Chicken Sisters grabbed me from the first drafts of Amanda’s pitch to appear on reality TV’s Food Wars, which gave us enough information to drop us right into the middle of a generation-spanning restaurant rivalry. As Amanda and Mae take turns narrating, the action and their own rivalry begins to heat up. The drama associated with the show exposes unhealed conflicts and carefully-hidden family secrets. I loved every moment along the way, especially the satisfying and well-earned happy ending.

The audio performance was wonderful, with two voices helping to give each sister and every other character their own distinctive and recognizable identity.

The Chicken Sisters feud

Nice summer read. A little slow to start but once I got into it I could put it down. Nice story of a family business with a past , present and future.

Meh

Not my favorite. Just never really connected with the characters and it was wayyy too long of a listen for something I wasn’t really invested in. Only finished cuz it was for bookclub. :(