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Fiction.
Literature.
HTML:Powerful, emotional, and beautifully written, Alan Drew's stunning first novel brings to life two unforgettable families–one Kurdish, one American–and the sacrifice and love that bind them together. In a small town outside Istanbul, Sinan Basioglu, a devout Muslim, and his wife, Nilüfer, are preparing for their nine-year-old son's coming-of-age ceremony. Their headstrong fifteen-year-old daughter, ?rem, resents the attention her brother, Ismail, receives from their parents. For her, there was no such festive observance–only the wrapping of her head in a dark scarf and strict rules that keep her hidden away from boys and her friends. But even before the night of the celebration, ?rem has started to change, to the dismay of her Kurdish father. What Sinan doesn't know is that much of her transformation is due to her secret relationship with their neighbor, Dylan, the seventeen-year-old American son of expatriate teachers. ?rem sees Dylan as the gateway to a new life, one that will free her from the confines of conservative Islam. Yet the young man's presence and Sinan's growing awareness of their relationship affirms Sinan's wish to move his family to the safety of his old village, a place where his children would be sheltered from the cosmopolitan temptations of Istanbul, and where, as the civil war in the south wanes, he hopes to raise his children in the Kurdish tradition. But when a massive earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the Basioglu family is faced with greater challenges. Losing everything, they are forced to forage for themselves, living as refugees in their own country. And their survival becomes dependent on their American neighbors, to whom they are unnervingly indebted. As love develops between ?rem and Dylan, Sinan makes a series of increasingly dangerous decisions that push him toward a betrayal that will change everyone's lives forever. The deep bonds among father, son, and daughter; the tension between honoring tradition and embracing personal freedom; the conflict between cultures and faiths; the regrets of age and the passions of youth–these are the timeless themes Alan Drew weaves into a brilliant fiction debut.… (more)
Limelite: The life of a modern Cairo Muslim family, heartwarming, full of conflict, but also of the ties that bind. More uplifting portrayal of Islam than in "Gardens of Water."
Here's what I wrote in 2008 about this read: "An American boy and Kurdish find love in Istanbul during the 1999 Earthquake. But it's still early days for love across these boundaries and tragedy results. It was a bit predictable, but still informative and insightful re life in Istanbul, life for Kurds in Turkey, and the Christian / Islam misunderstandings of each other." ( )
A good book, well written with great prose. Very difficult subject material, but well-worth the take on the differentiation of Kurdish culture with the rest of the world. ( )
This was a last-minute impulse buy from the bestsellers section at the bookstore. I wasn't sure why I picked it up except that the cover looked so familiar to Hosseini's The Kite Runner. Similar in size, at least.
Anything Islamic seems to sell these days. Set in Istanbul, Turkey, first time writer Alan Drew's story traces the life of Sinan and his family as he struggles caused through the upheavals of an earthquake that devastates his home. Poignant, and moving, the book mainly traces richly the character of Sinan, his daughter Irem, and son Ismail.
Intriguing to me was the central theme of conflict between the Muslim Sinan and the Christian American whose wife helps his own son to live through her death. Sinan's conflict in being in debt to a country that he despises is fascinating to read through. Yet, it was not Sinan I liked the most. It was the character of Irem - her rebellion, her disdain for society's mores echoing my own beliefs.
I read the book through the night from 1:30AM to 5AM. It was worth the loss of sleep. In the end, I wanted to read more.. ( )
3.5 / 5 stars. At times the story dragged a little so I couldn't give it a 4. This book really gets your thinking about different religious views and how there really is no right or wrong....just a personal choice as to what you hold in your heart. I had a hard time wrapping my head around some choices made based on beliefs though. ( )
Well, I was 100 pages in and then lost the book for about 3 weeks. I found it under the front seat of my car (where I swear I looked before!) and am about 2/3 of the way through. Interesting story - kind of a Turkish Romeo and Juliet with Kurds and Americans, but the writing is very simplistic. A good book for YA readers.
In the rush of bodies to board the ferry leaving Istanbul for Golcuk, Sinan lost his son.
Quotations
Last words
The donkey was old, its hip bones poking against its graying hide, but for a brief moment, just a few wonderful seconds, the man and his cart sped along faster than the train.
Fiction.
Literature.
HTML:Powerful, emotional, and beautifully written, Alan Drew's stunning first novel brings to life two unforgettable families–one Kurdish, one American–and the sacrifice and love that bind them together. In a small town outside Istanbul, Sinan Basioglu, a devout Muslim, and his wife, Nilüfer, are preparing for their nine-year-old son's coming-of-age ceremony. Their headstrong fifteen-year-old daughter, ?rem, resents the attention her brother, Ismail, receives from their parents. For her, there was no such festive observance–only the wrapping of her head in a dark scarf and strict rules that keep her hidden away from boys and her friends. But even before the night of the celebration, ?rem has started to change, to the dismay of her Kurdish father. What Sinan doesn't know is that much of her transformation is due to her secret relationship with their neighbor, Dylan, the seventeen-year-old American son of expatriate teachers. ?rem sees Dylan as the gateway to a new life, one that will free her from the confines of conservative Islam. Yet the young man's presence and Sinan's growing awareness of their relationship affirms Sinan's wish to move his family to the safety of his old village, a place where his children would be sheltered from the cosmopolitan temptations of Istanbul, and where, as the civil war in the south wanes, he hopes to raise his children in the Kurdish tradition. But when a massive earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the Basioglu family is faced with greater challenges. Losing everything, they are forced to forage for themselves, living as refugees in their own country. And their survival becomes dependent on their American neighbors, to whom they are unnervingly indebted. As love develops between ?rem and Dylan, Sinan makes a series of increasingly dangerous decisions that push him toward a betrayal that will change everyone's lives forever. The deep bonds among father, son, and daughter; the tension between honoring tradition and embracing personal freedom; the conflict between cultures and faiths; the regrets of age and the passions of youth–these are the timeless themes Alan Drew weaves into a brilliant fiction debut.
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Powerful, emotional, and beautifully written, Alan Drew's stunning first novel brings to life two unforgettable familiesone Kurdish, one Americanand the sacrifice and love that bind them together. In a small town outside Istanbul,Sinan Basioglu, a devout Muslim, and his wife, Nilufer, are preparing for their nine-year-old son's coming-of-age ceremony. Their headstrong fifteen-year-old daughter, irem, resents the attention her brother, Ismail, receives from their parents. For her, there was no such festive observanceonly the wrapping of her head in a dark scarf and strict rules that keep her hidden away from boys and her friends. But even before the night of the celebration, irem has started to change, to the dismay of her Kurdish father. What Sinan doesn't know is that much of her transformation is due to her secret relationship with their neighbor, Dylan, the seventeen-year-old American son of expatriate teachers. irem sees Dylan as the gateway to a new life, one that will free her from the confines of conservative Islam. Yet the young man's presence and Sinan's growing awareness of their relationship affirms Sinan's wish to move his family to the safety of his old village, a place where his children would be sheltered from the cosmopolitan temptations of Istanbul, and where, as the civil war in the south wanes, he hopes to raise his children in the Kurdish tradition. But when a massive earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the Basioglu family is faced with greater challenges. Losing everything, they are forced to forage for themselves, living as refugees in their own country. And their survival becomes dependent on their American neighbors, to whom they are unnervingly indebted. As love develops between irem and Dylan, Sinan makes a series of increasingly dangerous decisions that push him toward a betrayal that will change everyone's lives forever. The deep bonds among father, son, and daughter; the tension between honoring tradition and embracing personal freedom; the conflict between cultures and faiths; the regrets of age and the passions of youththese are the timeless themes Alan Drew weaves into a brilliant fiction debut.
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