Elif Shafak Boeken

Deze adembenemende roman weeft de verhalen van een verloren gedicht, twee grote rivieren en drie opmerkelijke levens samen, allemaal verbonden door een enkele druppel water. In de oude ruïnes van Nineveh liggen fragmenten van de Epische Gedichten van Gilgamesh verborgen in het zand. In het Victoriaanse Londen ontsnapt een getalenteerd kind genaamd Arthur, geboren aan de oevers van de Thames, aan de armoede door zijn uitzonderlijke geheugen. Zijn talent bezorgt hem een plek als leerling bij een drukkerij, waar hij het boek "Nineveh and Its Remains" ontdekt, wat zijn horizon verbreedt. In 2014 wacht Narin, een Yazidi-meisje aan de Tigris, op haar doop met water uit de heilige plaats Lalish. Haar ceremonie wordt verstoord, waardoor zij en haar grootmoeder door oorlogsgebieden moeten navigeren om hun heilige vallei te bereiken. In 2018 verhuist Zaleekhah, een hydrologe die worstelt met een verbroken huwelijk, naar een woonschip op de Thames. Ze verwacht een leven zonder liefde totdat een onverwachte verbinding met haar thuisland haar perspectief verandert. Dit meeslepende verhaal beslaat eeuwen en culturen en verkent de blijvende kracht van water: "Water herinnert zich. Het zijn de mensen die vergeten."

Het voelt alsof de wereld op instorten staat. Dus hoe kunnen we dan vasthouden aan ons optimisme? Hoe kunnen we onze hoop, vertrouwen en geloof in iets beters voeden? En hoe kunnen we in deze verdeelde wereld onze rust/ kalmte bewaren? In dit prachtig geschreven, verhelderende stuk overdenkt Booker Prize-genomineerde Elif Shafak dit pessimistische tijdperk, waarin onze politiek wordt geleid en misleid door emoties, en waarin desinformatie en angst de norm zijn. In een gevoelig, bemoedigend pleidooi voor optimisme diept Shafak haar eigen herinneringen op en put ze uit de kracht van verhalen om te laten zien hoe democratie, tolerantie en vooruitgang door schrijven gevoed kunnen worden. Daarbij geeft ze en passant ook nog antwoord op de meest prangende vragen van onze tijd.

Tequila Leila, zoals haar vrienden en klanten haar noemen, wordt vermoord en achtergelaten op een vuilnisbelt in Istanbul. In de laatste minuten van haar leven vraagt ze zich af hoe het zover heeft kunnen komen. Elke minuut brengt een nieuwe herinnering: aan de smaak van het pittige geitenstoofvlees uit haar kindertijd, aan de geur van de koffie met kardemom die ze deelde met haar geliefde, aan de stank op straat bij het bordeel waar ze werkte. Maar vooral herinnert ze zich haar vrienden, de bonte verzameling mensen die haar nooit zullen laten vallen en die nu wanhopig naar haar op zoek zijn. 10 minuten 38 seconden in deze vreemde wereld stond op de shortlist voor de Booker Prize 2019.

Een proeflezer wordt door een manuscript over de 13e-eeuwse soefi Roemi aan het denken gezet over het gebrek aan liefde in haar leven.

An honor killing shatters and transforms the lives of Turkish immigrants in 1970s London Internationally bestselling Turkish author Elif Shafak’s new novel is a dramatic tale of families, love, and misunderstandings that follows the destinies of twin sisters born in a Kurdish village. While Jamila stays to become a midwife, Pembe follows her Turkish husband, Adem, to London, where they hope to make new lives for themselves and their children. In London, they face a choice: stay loyal to the old traditions or try their best to fit in. After Adem abandons his family, Iskender, the eldest son, must step in and become the one who will not let any shame come to the family name. And when Pembe begins a chaste affair with a man named Elias, Iskender will discover that you could love someone with all your heart and yet be ready to hurt them. Just published to great acclaim in England, Honor is a powerful, gripping exploration of guilt and innocence, loyalty and betrayal, and the trials of the immigrant, as well as the love and heartbreak that too often tear families apart.

With an essay by renowned Turkish author Elif Safak.The debate surrounding Turkey’s potential membership in the European Union prompted Andreas Herzau to take a closer look at this country. Istanbul is situated at the border between Europe and Asia, and it was there that he found a concentrate of the challenges facing Turkey today. Yet the city also displays the opportunities that are open to the country as a whole. Herzau’s images capture precisely the many facets of the Turkish port: workers being ferried from one continent to the other, Muslims at prayer, people window shopping and looking at fashion advertising. Working with the genre of street photography, the photographer discovers the city on foot—watching, walking, and waiting until the pictures find him. In this way, the photographer creates spontaneous snapshots of public life. And since people from all walks of life are encountered on the street, the photographs reveal much about present-day conditions and a life between tradition and modernity.

In 1974 Cyprus, two teenagers from opposing sides of a divided land meet in secret at a taverna, a refuge from the turmoil surrounding them. Kostas, a Greek Christian, and Defne, a Turkish Muslim, find solace in the vibrant atmosphere filled with the best food, music, and wine. The taverna, adorned with garlic, chili peppers, and wild herbs, allows them to escape the harsh realities of their world, even if just for a few hours. A fig tree growing through the roof stands as a silent witness to their joyful meetings and the inevitable separation that war will bring. Decades later, in north London, sixteen-year-old Ada Kazantzakis longs to understand her family's past, having never visited the island of her parents' birth. She grapples with the weight of secrets and silence, her only link to her heritage being a Ficus Carica in her garden. The narrative weaves together themes of belonging, identity, love, trauma, and the destruction of nature, ultimately exploring the journey toward renewal. Through this rich and magical tale, the author captures the enduring impact of memory and the quest for connection across generations.

'Tell me. What would be the right gift to send to a man who has everything?' 'An elephant, my Lord. The biggest animal on the land.' Sixteenth century Istanbul: a young stowaway arrives in the city bearing an extraordinary gift for the Sultan. The boy has no wordly possessions to his name except Chota, a rare and valuable white elephant destined for the palace menagerie. So begins an epic adventure that will see young Jahan rise from his lowly origins to the highest ranks of the Sultan's court. Along the way he will meet deceitful courtiers and false friends, gypsies, animal tamers, and the beautiful, mischievous Princess Mihrimah. He will journey on Chota's back to the furthest corners of the Sultan's kingdom and back again. And one day he will catch the eye of the royal architect, Sinan, a chance encounter destined to change Jahan's fortunes forever. Filled with the scents, sounds and sights of the Ottoman Empire, when Istanbul was the teeming centre of civilisation, The Architect's Apprentice is a magical, sweeping tale of one boy and his elephant caught up in a world of wonder and danger.

The Bastard of Istanbul is a vivid tale of two families intertwined by a dark history. Armanoush, an Armenian American, seeks her roots in Turkey, while Asya, a spirited young woman in Istanbul, navigates her own identity. This dramatic novel explores themes of memory, forgetting, and the complexities of national identity.

"Set across Istanbul and Oxford, from the 1980's to the present day,Three Daughters of Eveis a sweeping tale of faith and friendship, tradition and modernity, love and an unexpected betrayal. Peri, a wealthy Turkish housewife and mother, is on her way to a dinner party at a seaside mansion in Istanbul when a beggar snatches her handbag. As she wrestles to get it back, a photograph falls to the ground - an old polaroid of three young women and their university professor. A relic from a past - and a love Peri had tried desperately to forget. The photograph takes Peri back to Oxford University, as nineteen year old sent abroad for the first time. To her dazzling, rebellious Professor and his life-changing course on God. To the house she shareswith her two best friends, Shirin and Mona, and their arguments about identity, Islam and feminism. And finally, to the scandal that tore them all apart. Shirin, Peri and Mona, they were the most unlikely of friends. They were the Sinner, the Believer and the Confused."

From award-winning writer Elif Shafak, the Orange Prize long-listed author of The Forty Rules of Love and The Architect's Apprentice, The Gaze is a humorous and carnivalesque exploration of what it means to look and be looked at... An obese woman and her lover, a dwarf, are sick of being stared at wherever they go and so decide to reverse roles. The man goes out wearing make-up and the woman draws a moustache on her face. This elegant, unforgettable novel explores our desire to look at others. 'Beautifully evoked' The Times 'Original and compelling' TLS

The author recounts her effort to balance her writing career and her parenting responsibilities, describing her battle with postpartum depression, her views on prominent women authors, and the many roles she embraced throughout her journey.

Bonbon Palace was once a stately apartment block in Istanbul. Now it is a sadly dilapidated home to ten wildly different individuals and their families. There's a womanizing, hard-drinking academic with a penchant for philosophy; a 'clean freak' and her lice-ridden daughter; a lapsed Jew in search of true love; and a charmingly naïve mistress whose shadowy past lurks in the building. When the garbage at Bonbon Palace is stolen, a mysterious sequence of events unfolds that result in a soul-searching quest for truth.

The narrative intertwines the lives of three individuals across different eras and locations, united by the theme of water. In ancient Mesopotamia, fragments of the Epic of Gilgamesh lie buried. In Victorian London, a gifted boy named Arthur escapes poverty through literature, while in modern Turkey, Narin faces a perilous journey amid conflict. Meanwhile, Zaleekhah, a hydrologist in London, seeks solace on a houseboat after personal loss. Elif Shafak's storytelling explores the connections between history, culture, and the enduring significance of water.

Buchmagie pur! Dieses Kinderbuch der Bestsellerautorin Elif Shafak erzählt eine poetische Geschichte über die Macht der Fantasie und den Zauber von Geschichten. Liane liebt Geschichten und findet ihr Glück im Lesen und fantasievollen Tagträumen. Eines Tages entdeckt sie in der Schulbibliothek einen alten Globus mit einem rätselhaften Kontinent in Buchform. Kurz darauf begegnet sie zwei geheimnisvollen Kindern aus dem Land der Geschichten, das in großer Gefahr schwebt. Es lebt von der Fantasie der Menschen, doch da immer weniger lesen, droht es zu verdorren. Liane ist entschlossen, das magische Land zu retten, bevor es zu spät ist, und begibt sich auf eine abenteuerliche Reise. Lesen tut gut! Bücher und spannende Geschichten fördern die Fantasie und Kreativität. Von Bestsellerautorin Elif Shafak: Das erste Kinderbuch einer der bedeutendsten Schriftstellerinnen der Gegenwart. Ab 8 Jahren: Ein fantasievolles und zauberhaftes Buch mit dem Potenzial zum Kinderbuchklassiker. Zeitlose und brandaktuelle Themen wie Fantasie und Umweltschutz werden behandelt. Extra-Motivation: Zu diesem Buch gibt es ein Quiz bei Antolin. Diese Geschichte ist ein flammendes Plädoyer für die Macht der Fantasie und den Zauber des Geschichtenerzählens. Ideal für bücherliebende Mädchen und Jungen ab 8 Jahren.

Ein Roman des urbanen Amerika mit all seinen sexuellen und religiösen Verwirrungen - grandios erzählt, authentisch im Ton und voller überraschender Wendungen. Wenn Omar eines in den wenigen Monaten in Boston gelernt hat, dann dies: Amerikaner lieben es, wenn sie Namen aussprechen können. Namen sind die Brücken zu den Burgen der Existenz anderer Menschen. Jemanden anderes Namen zu lernen heißt, einen Teil seiner Existenz zu verstehen. Und so hat sich Ömer in Omar verwandelt, ist in eine WG mit Abed und Piyu gezogen und hat sich Hals über Kopf in Gail verliebt. Gail ist eine attraktive Amerikanerin, die eigentlich Zarpandit heißt und ihre Unsicherheit und Schüchternheit durch sexuelle Eskapaden und merkwürdige Obsessionen überspielt. Was Gail und Omar vereint, ist das Gefühl, nur in ihrer Beziehung sie selbst sein können. Und das Wissen, daß ihre Vorstellung vom amerikanischen Traum nicht dieselbe ist ... Freundschaft und Liebe, Tradition und Veränderung, Sprache und Nationalität i m Schmelztigel des modernen Amerikas - klug und humorvoll macht uns Elif Shafak Reichtum und Vielfalt der Kulturen zum Geschenk, ohne den Preis zu verschweigen: das Verschwinden der eigenen Identität.

Kararır gökyüzü bazen; kasvetli bulutlar kaplar semayı. Hayatın ritmi durağanlaşır, sohbetler bildikleşir, içimizde birikir yalnızlık hissi. Nasıl özleriz güneşi o zaman, griler içinde aradığımız bir tutam renk demeti. Peri tozu gibi, inceden. Gönülden yazılmış her roman, her hikâye, her kelime bir şemsparedir... Güneş parçası... Düşer omuzlarımıza, kar tanesi gibi usulca, yağmur gibi yıkar ruhumuzu, arındırır tozdan kirden tekdüzeliklerden...

Tadına doyulmaz, kimi zaman kışkırtıcı, kimi zaman sakinleştirici ama ruhu hep özgür kalan yazılar.... İnsan ki eşrefi mahlukattır, içindeki semavi özü keşfetmekle yükümlüdür. Çıkacaksın yollara, kendine doğru git gidebildiğin kadar. Keşif boynumuzun borcudur. Kendimizi keşfetmek, aşkı keşfetmek, dünyayı keşfetmek, Ötekini keşfetmek... (…) Çakılı kalmamak sırf alışkanlıklardan ötürü demir attığın koylara. Çıkmak oralardan, geçmek dalgakıranların beri tarafına, bilmediğin memleketlere varmak, tatmadığın yemekler yemek, sözlerini anlamadığın şarkılarla içlenmek, risk almak, dağılmak ve parçalanmak ve hasret çekmek buram buram, gurbetin tadına bakmak ve kendini yabancının gözünden görmek, şaşırmak yeniden, şaşırmak bir çocuk gibi dünyanın hallerine, çeşitliliğine, güzelliğine, acımasızlıklarına... şaşırmak ölene kadar... şaşırma kabiliyetini hiç yitirmemek... budur son tahlilde Âdemoğullarına, Havvakızlarına kendilerini keşfettirten serüven.

Spiegel der Stadt ist ein fesselnder historischer Roman von Elif Shafak, der den Leser durch ein ernstes Thema unterhält. Die Handlung beginnt im Spanien der Inquisition im 17. Jahrhundert und erstreckt sich über Italien bis ins Osmanische Reich. Die jüdischstämmige Familie Pereira wird von der Inquisition verfolgt, wobei Neid der Auslöser für ihre Verfolgung ist. Eine verbotene Liebe dient als Vorwand für die nächtliche Verhaftung durch die Inquisitoren. Kurz vor der Katastrophe, dem Verbrennen auf dem Scheiterhaufen, gelingt es zwei Familienmitgliedern, nach Istanbul zu fliehen, wo sie eine neue Heimat unter den Sepharden finden. Im Mittelpunkt stehen große Gefühle, insbesondere die leidenschaftliche Liebe zwischen Isabel und Miguel, die die historische Realität greifbar machen. Gleichzeitig bietet der Roman einen realistischen Blick auf oft vergessene Dimensionen einer dunklen Phase der europäischen Geschichte. Die Aktualität des Werkes wird durch die Thematisierung der Beziehungen zwischen Judentum, Christentum und Islam verstärkt, die eine andere Vergangenheit aufweisen, als sie in der heutigen politischen und medialen Darstellung vermittelt wird. Shafak hinterfragt auch die exotischen Vorstellungen des "Orients" und karikiert dabei subtil bekannte türkische Schriftsteller.

(...) Derken o yolculukta bir an geliyor, durup geriye bakma gereği duyuyorum. Geçtiğim yolları, uğradığım durakları, güzergah boyu karşılaştıklarımı anımsıyorum. Bu kitap dünden bugüne yazdıklarımdan ufacık bir seçkidir. Bir alıntılar kitabı. Karın doyursun diye değil, tadımlık niyetine. Kağıdın üzerine konmuş birkaç tatlı kelam. Kağıt Helva...

Sana kelimelerden kaleler yaptım. Hendekli, balkonlu, eflatun bayraklı, girişi saklı kocaman kaleler. Bir odasında bıraktım yüreğimi. Merasimsiz, habersiz, tantanasız ve beklentisiz usulca düşürüverdim elimden, olur da bulursan belki sevinirsin diye, öylesine. Sana harflerden sarmaşıklar ördüm; geceleri gözlerini kapadığında, uyku ile uyanıklık arası o tekinsiz aralıkta durduğunda, cinlerin meşveret alanında yapayalnız kaldığında koklarsın belki, hatırlarsın diye. Sana alfabeden kaftan diktim; azametle giyesin ve hiç üşümeyesin diye, kalın kadifeden, sırma ipliklerle. İşledim üzerine isminin baş harflerini, sessiz ve derinden, kimse bilmeden, sadece Yaradan'ın duyduğu bir yemin gibi. Sana noktalardan güller, virgüllerden bülbüller, ünlemlerden yaylalar, noktalı virgüllerden dağlar ve ovalar yaptım. Her bir imla işaretini özenle ekledim isminin büyüsüne. Çünkü sevmek, yeni bir dil inşa etmek demek. İki kişilik bir dil. Çünkü aşkın olduğu yerde muhakkak kelam vardır, sessizlik değil.