The Bastard of Istanbul
Elif Shafak · b. 1971 · Turkey / UK
Why it matters
An Armenian-American family and their Turkish counterparts are entwined around the buried memory of the 1915 genocide. Shafak was prosecuted in Turkey for 'insulting Turkishness' over this novel's frankness.
At a glance
family sagahistorical fictionmagical realism
Difficulty 4/10medium pace360 pagesLarge dual-family cast and dual timelines, but rendered in clear, propulsive contemporary prose.
Where to go next
Elif Shafak · 2009The Forty Rules of LoveLvl 4Fast paced
Elif Shafak · 201910 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange WorldLvl 5Medium pace
Orhan Pamuk · 1998My Name Is RedLvl 7Medium pace
Alaa Al Aswany · 2002The Yacoubian BuildingLvl 4Fast paced
Han Kang · 2007The VegetarianLvl 6Fast paced
Jenny Erpenbeck · 2015Go, Went, GoneLvl 5Medium pace