Free Audio Book : To Paradise, By Hanya Yanagihara

To Paradise stands as a fin de siècle novel, a marvel of literary craftsmanship, and, above all, an emotional masterpiece. Yanagihara's incredible storytelling prowess in this novel derives its immense power from her profound understanding of the yearning to protect our loved ones—partners, lovers, children, friends, family, and fellow citizens—and the excruciating pain that accompanies our inability to do so.

Set in an alternate version of 1893 America, New York thrives as part of the Free States, a place where people can love and live with whomever they choose, or so it seems. Here, a vulnerable scion of a prominent family resists an arranged marriage to a suitable suitor, drawn instead to an impoverished yet charming music teacher. Meanwhile, in 1993 Manhattan, a young Hawaiian man grapples with the AIDS epidemic alongside his much older, affluent partner. He conceals his tumultuous childhood and his father's fate. Jump to 2093, and the world is ravaged by plagues and dominated by totalitarian rule. In this dystopian future, a brilliant scientist's troubled granddaughter seeks to navigate life without him while uncovering the mystery surrounding her husband's inexplicable disappearances.

These three narrative sections compose an ingenious symphony, with recurring themes and motifs weaving a rich tapestry: a townhouse in Washington Square Park, Greenwich Village; the scourge of illness and its costly treatments; the stark juxtaposition of wealth and destitution; the interplay between the weak and the strong; issues of race; the essence of family and nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of both the powerful and the revolutionaries; the longing to find a haven on Earth and the gradual acceptance that such a place might be unattainable. What binds not only the characters but these diverse Americas together are their introspective reckonings with the quintessential facets of humanity: fear, love, shame, need, and loneliness.