The Memory Keepers Daughter, Kim Edwards
The Memory Keepers Daughter, Kim Edwards
14 Rating(s)
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The Memory Keeper's Daughter

Author: Kim Edwards

Narrator: Ilyana Kadushin

Unabridged: 15 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 10/18/2016


Synopsis

A #1 New York Times bestseller by Kim Edwards, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a brilliantly crafted novel of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of love

Kim Edwards’s stunning novel begins on a winter night in 1964 in Lexington, Kentucky, when a blizzard forces Dr. David Henry to deliver his own twins. His son, born first, is perfectly healthy, but the doctor immediately recognizes that his daughter has Down syndrome. Rationalizing it as a need to protect Norah, his wife, he makes a split second decision that will alter all of their lives forever. He asks his nurse, Caroline, to take the baby away to an institution and never to reveal the secret. Instead, she disappears into another city to raise the child herself. So begins this beautifully told story that unfolds over a quarter of a century—in which these two families, ignorant of each other, are yet bound by the fateful decision made that winter night long ago.

A family drama, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter explores every mother's silent fear: What would happen if you lost your child and she grew up without you? It is also an astonishing tale of love and how the mysterious ties that hold a family together help us survive the heartache that occurs when long-buried secrets are finally uncovered.

About The Author

Kim Edwards is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, which was translated into thirty-eight languages.  She is also the author of the New York Times bestselling novel, The Lake of Dreams, and a collection of short stories, The Secrets of a Fire King.  Her honors include the Whiting Award, the British Book Award, and USA Todays Book of the Year, as well as the Nelson Algren Award, a National Magazine Award, and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.  A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, she has taught widely in the US and Asia, and currently lives in Lexington, Kentucky.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Christian on April 24, 2007

This book was terrible, not because it was bad, but because it was so good: I couldn't put it down until I finished the final pages at 3 in the morning. Not a good thing, when your alarm goes off at 5:50 AM. What fascinates me about this book is what it has to say about "secrets." The basic premise:......more

Goodreads review by Erin on July 19, 2007

Man I hated this book- the plot had some great potential, but instead you got to witness one scene of frustrated people not knowing how to deal with their emotions after another. Seriously, imagine 60 someodd pages of: wife- "I'm sad, darling, talk to me" husband- "we can't have another baby" silenc......more

Goodreads review by Sarah on June 29, 2007

This is one of those books that I always see people reading in parks and on the subway, and I just want to shout at them, "Save yourself! There's still time to quit reading!" Really, it's one of those books that has an interesting premise/situation, but doesn't go anywhere. The interesting premise i......more

Goodreads review by Lisette on February 07, 2009

Wow, I'm really torn as to what to say about this book. I will start by saying that Kim Edwards is a skilled writer and there's no taking that away from her. Her words flow beautifully and that was greatly appreciated by me. I began reading this book and fell in love with it. From the beginning, I wa......more

Goodreads review by Brittany on December 02, 2023

Wow... This book was heavy. I listened to this in my car, so it stretched out for a while, and I got to think about it and talk about it a LOT. The narrator: Martha Plimpton (I guess there is also a version narrated by someone else), did a phenomenal book. She brought this book to life in a fantasti......more


Quotes

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter unfolds from an absolutely mesmerizing premise, drawing you deeply and irrevocably into the entangled lives of two families and the devastating secret that shapes them both. I loved this riveting story with its intricate characters and beautiful language.”
—Sue Monk Kidd


“In The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, Kim Edwards has created a tale of regret and redemption . . . of characters haunted by their past. Crafted with language so lovely you have to reread the passages just to be captivated all over again . . . simply a beautiful book.”
—Jodi Picoult


“Anyone would be struck by the extraordinary power and sympathy of The Memory Keeper’s Daughter.”
The Washington Post


“Edwards is a born novelist.”
Chicago Tribune