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The Bastard of Istanbul
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Bastard of Istanbul Unknown - 2007

by Shafak, Elif


From the publisher

From one of Turkey's most acclaimed and outspoken writers comes a novel about the tangled histories of two families. In her second novel written in English, Elif Shafak confronts her country's violent past in a vivid and colorful tale set in both Turkey and the United States. At its center is the "bastard" of the title, Asya, a nineteen-year-old woman who loves Johnny Cash and the French Existentialists, and the four sisters of the Kazanci family who all live together in an extended household in Istanbul: Zehila, the zestful, headstrong youngest sister who runs a tattoo parlor and is Asya's mother; Banu, who has newly discovered herself as a clairvoyant; Cevriye, a widowed high school teacher; and Feride, a hypochondriac obsessed with impending disaster. Their one estranged brother lives in Arizona with his wife and her Armenian daughter, Armanoush. When Armanoush secretly flies to Istanbul in search of her identity, she finds the Kazanci sisters and becomes fast friends with Asya. A secret is uncovered that links the two families and ties them to the 1915 Armenian deportations and massacres. Full of vigorous, unforgettable female characters, The Bastard of Istanbul is a bold, powerful tale that will confirm Shafak as a rising star of international fiction.

Details

  • Title The Bastard of Istanbul
  • Author Shafak, Elif
  • Binding unknown
  • Edition Unabridged
  • Publisher Tantor Media
  • Date April 1, 2007
  • ISBN 9781400103973

About the author

Elif Shafak, an award-winning, bestselling novelist and the most widely read female writer in Turkey, is the author of "The Gaze" and "The Saint of Incipient Insanities."
Laural Merlington has recorded well over one hundred audiobooks, including works by Margaret Atwood and Alice Hoffman, and is the recipient of several "AudioFile" Earphones Awards. An Audie Award nominee, she has also directed over one hundred audiobooks.