The Art of Hearing Heartbeats

The Art of Hearing Heartbeats

by Jan-Phillipp Sendker

Genre: Fiction

Synopsis: A poignant and inspirational love story set in Burma, The Art of Hearing Heartbeats  spans the decades between the 1950s and the present.  When a successful New York lawyer suddenly disappears without a trace, neither his wife nor his daughter Julia has any idea where he might be…until they find a love letter he wrote many years ago, to a Burmese woman they have never heard of. Intent on solving the mystery and coming to terms with her father’s past, Julia decides to travel to the village where the woman lived. There she uncovers a tale of unimaginable hardship, resilience, and passion that will reaffirm the reader’s belief in the power of love to move mountains.

From the book's website

Review:  This review is difficult for me because I was left not knowing what to think of it when I finished reading.  I so wanted to talk about this book with someone and really delve into the depths of the story. There were some parts of this story that were very unbelievable but perhaps are truly part of the beliefs of the Burmese culture.  There are also times when the author poses multiple deep meaning questions all in a row and that seemed to be just too much going on in Julia's mind at one time.  But otherwise I loved this book.  There was mysticism and romance.  The story that U Ba, the man who finds Julia to tell her about her father, captures you and builds this beautiful story that you can't help to keep reading.  The ending to me was not quite complete and I really wanted to know more.  But overall this story is beautifully written and a unique story.

Rating 4 1/2 stars