pickAnother beautifully written novel by Elif Shafak. Humanity is united by water as this story illustrates in the telling of Arthur who lives near the River Thames in the 1840s, Narin who lives by the River Tigris in 2014, Zaleekhah who lives in a houseboat on the River Thames in 2018.
pickI loved this one. It‘s about how one drop of water can connect us. It‘s told via the unique voices of three people. Arthur who born very near the Thames, Narin who lives near the Tigris and Zaleekah who is renting a houseboat on the Thames. Beautifully written and very moving at times, I was very immersed in these characters‘ lives and found it a page turner.
A library book. I loved The Island of Missing Trees by this author so looking forward to this one.
pick#roll100 another absolutely beautiful novel from Elif Shafa - she has such a talent for description and drawing you into the lives of her characters. Heartbreaking that so much of this is based on true events.
pickLoved this story. Human connection through water. Told through 3 perspectives, set on the banks of the River Thames and the Tigris in 2014, 2018 and 1840 (and a bit beyond). My favorite character was King Arthur of the Sewers and Slums. Not one I‘ll soon forget!
I was at the House of Literature last night to hear Elif Shafak talk about her latest book
What a talk. She talked about so many aspects of the novel and the significance of different writing styles for the different POV. I now have a deeper understanding of the novel
And Sharif was so sweet. Taking her time for everyone wanting a signed copy and a selfie. I stood 50 min in a queue. I can‘t remember the last time I did that
I popped into the bookstore while my oldest son was with his tutor. This book jumped out at me and reminded me to check it out at the library. I did read the first few pages there. Is that stealing? I‘m not a bookstore person, at the library, this is encouraged!
pickReread with IRL club and it was a raucous good time, lots of fodder for laughter and discussion.
Once again struck by the highly relatable themes. Humanity hasn‘t fundamentally changed.
pickEvery once in a while you read the blurb of a book and think this could be a new favorite. Then you read the first paragraph and gets it confirmed. This was that book for me. I knew I was in safe hands and could just get lost in the story.
Arthur by the Thames from the 1840s, Narin by the Tigris in 2014 and Zaleekhah by the Thames in 2018. I preferred Arthur and Zaleekhah‘s stories and I post under a spoiler why
And that ending
It occurs to him, in that moment, that poverty has its own scent, an odour that emanates from his pores, easily detected. It is an awful, debilitating thought.
(This quote has my thinking of “Parasite” right away)
