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Book: The Bastard Of Istanbul

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  • Book: The Bastard Of Istanbul

    THE BASTARD OF ISTANBUL

    Kirkus Reviews
    November 1, 2006

    An astonishingly rich and lively story of an Istanbul family whose
    mixed up heritage mirrors the complexity of Turkish society.

    Shafak (The Gaze, 2006), whom the Turkish government has put on trial
    for "denigrating Turkishness," writes here about the 1915 massacre of
    Armenians. The four Kazanci sisters live together with their mother
    and paternal grandmother in Istanbul, their bother Mustafa having
    been sent to Arizona as a young man to avoid the Kazanci curse: The
    men of the family tend to die by age 41. When the youngest sister,
    rebellious Zeliha, has a daughter out of wedlock, she refuses to
    name the father. Calling Zeliha auntie although she knows their
    relationship, Aysa grows up in this household of women.

    Zeliha runs a tattoo parlor; her sisters include a devout Muslim
    seer, a nationalistic history teacher and a batty feminist. To escape
    her doting aunts and grandmothers, Aysa hangs out with coffeehouse
    intellectuals, including a cartoonist indicted by the government
    for cartoons mocking the prime minister. Defensive about her lack
    of a father, Aysa takes an existential view of life that denies the
    importance of the past. Meanwhile in America, Armanoush is born to
    an Armenian father and American mother. After her parents divorce,
    Armanoush's mother marries Mustafa, who barely acknowledges his Turkish
    roots. Armanoush spends large chunks of her childhood with her father's
    loving Armenian family, which clings to history and long simmering
    bitterness against the Turks. Increasingly drawn to her Armenian
    roots, Armanoush travels to Istanbul (without telling her parents)
    to learn more of her family history. She stays with the Kazancis, who
    are astounded when she tells them what Turks did to Armenians. As Asya
    and Armanoush become friends, myths -- ethnic, familial and personal
    -- explode. Despite a misstep into melodrama concerning Mustafa,
    Shafak handles her large cast of characters and plotting with finesse.

    A hugely ambitious exploration of complex historical realities handled
    with an enchantingly light touch.

    Publication Date: 1/22/2007 0:00:00 Publisher: Viking Stage: Adult
    Star: 1 ISBN: 0-670-03834-2 Price: $24.95 Author: Shafak, Elif
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