Elif Şafak Pořadí knih (chronologicky)

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.

The new novel from the Booker-shortlisted, internationally bestselling author of The Island of Missing Trees and 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World ***** There Are Rivers in the Sky is a rich, sweeping novel set between the 19th century and modern times, about love and loss, memory and erasure, hurt and healing, centred around three enchanting characters living on the banks of the River Thames and the River Tigris - their lives all curiously touched by the epic of Gilgamesh. ***** 'Elif Shafak is a unique and powerful voice in world literature' Ian McEwan 'Shafak makes a new home for us in words' Colum McCann 'One of the best writers in the world today' Hanif Kureishi

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.

It feels like the world is falling apart. So how do we keep hold of our optimism? How do we nurture the parts of ourselves that hope, trust and believe in something better? And how can we stay sane in this world of division?In this beautifully written and illuminating polemic, Booker Prize nominee Elif Shafak reflects on our age of pessimism, when emotions guide and misguide our politics, and misinformation and fear are the norm. A tender, uplifting plea for optimism, Shafak draws on her own memories and delves into the power of stories to reveal how writing can nurture democracy, tolerance and progress. And in the process, she answers one of the most urgent questions of our time.

Co když v okamžiku smrti lidská mysl ještě několik převzácných minut pracuje? Přesně řečeno, deset minut třicet osm vteřin… Každá posmrtná minuta Leile přináší intenzivní smyslovou vzpomínku: chuť kořeněného guláše z kozy, kterou její otec obětoval na oslavu narození dlouho očekávaného syna; chuť směsi cukru s citronem, jíž si ženy depilují nohy, zatímco muži navštěvují mešitu; vůni kávy s kardamomem, kterou Leila pije s pohledným studentem v bordelu, kde je zaměstnaná. A všechny tyto vzpomínky jí také připomínají věrné přátele, s nimiž se sblížila v klíčových momentech svého života – přátele, kteří se ji nyní zoufale snaží najít…

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.

Peri, a married, wealthy, beautiful Turkish woman, 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. Three Daughters of Eve is set over an evening in contemporary Istanbul, as Peri arrives at the party and navigates the tensions that simmer in this crossroads country between East and West, religious and secular, rich and poor. Over the course of the dinner, and amidst an opulence that is surely ill begotten, terrorist attacks occur across the city. Competing in Peri's mind, however, are the memories invoked by her almost-lost Polaroid, of the time years earlier when she was sent abroad for the first time, to attend Oxford University. As a young woman there, she had become friends with the charming, adventurous Shirin, a fully assimilated Iranian girl, and Mona, a devout Egyptian American. Their arguments about Islam and feminism find focus in the charismatic but controversial Professor Azur, who teaches divinity, but in unorthodox ways. As the terrorist attacks come ever closer, Peri is moved to recall the scandal that tore them all apart.

A colorful, magical tale set during the height of the Ottoman Empire, from the acclaimed author of The Island of Missing Trees (a Reese's Book Club Pick) Chosen for Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall’s “Reading Room” Book Club In this novel, Turkey’s preeminent female writer spins an epic tale spanning nearly a century in the life of the Ottoman Empire. In 1540, twelve-year-old Jahan arrives in Istanbul. As an animal tamer in the sultan’s menagerie, he looks after the exceptionally smart elephant Chota and befriends (and falls for) the sultan’s beautiful daughter, Princess Mihrimah. A palace education leads Jahan to Mimar Sinan, the empire’s chief architect, who takes Jahan under his wing as they construct (with Chota’s help) some of the most magnificent buildings in history. Yet even as they build Sinan’s triumphant masterpieces—the incredible Suleymaniye and Selimiye mosques—dangerous undercurrents begin to emerge, with jealousy erupting among Sinan’s four apprentices. A memorable story of artistic freedom, creativity, and the clash between science and fundamentalism, Shafak’s intricate novel brims with vibrant characters, intriguing adventure, and the lavish backdrop of the Ottoman court, where love and loyalty are no match for raw power.

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.

'My mother died twice. I promised myself I would not let her story be forgotten'. And so begins the story of Esma a young Kurdish woman in London trying to come to terms with the terrible murder her brother has committed. Esma tells the story of her family stretching back three generations; back to her grandmother and the births of her mother and Aunt in a village on the edge of the Euphrates. Named Pembe and Jamila, meaning Pink and Beautiful rather than the names their mother wanted to call them, Destiny and Enough, the twin girls have very different futures ahead of them all of which will end in tragedy on a street in East London in 1978. A powerful, brilliant and moving account of murder, love and family set in a Kurdish village, Istanbul and London.

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.

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.

(...) 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...

Set within a once-stately apartment block in Istanbul, The Flea Palace tells the story of Bonbon Palace, built by Russian noble émigré Pavel Antipov for his wife Agripina at the end of the Tsarist reign. It is now sadly dilapidated, flea-infested, and home to ten very different individuals and their families. Elif Shafak gives us a bird's-eye insight into each apartment, and we see their comic and tragic lives unfold.

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

Longlisted for the 2008 Orange Fiction Prize, Elif Shafak's The Bastard of Istanbul is a tale of an extraordinary family curse and clashing cultural identities in the mystical and mysterious city of Istanbul. One rainy afternoon in Istanbul, a woman walks into a doctor's surgery. 'I need to have an abortion', she announces. She is nineteen years old and unmarried. What happens that afternoon will change her life. Twenty years later, Asya Kazanci lives with her extended family in Istanbul. Due to a mysterious family curse, all the Kaznci men die in their early forties, so it is a house of women, among them Asya's beautiful, rebellious mother Zeliha, who runs a tattoo parlour; Banu, who has newly discovered herself as clairvoyant; and Feride, a hypochondriac obsessed with impending disaster. And when Asya's Armenian-American cousin Armanoush comes to stay, long hidden family secrets connected with Turkey's turbulent past begin to emerge. 'Wonderfully magical, incredible, breathtaking...will have you gasping with disbelief in the last few pages' Sunday Express 'A beautiful book, the finest I have read about Turkey' Irish Times 'Heartbreaking...the beauty of Islam pervades Shafak's book' Vogue

Freundschaft und Liebe, Tradition und Veränderung, Sprache und Nationalität im Schmelztiegel des modernen Amerika. Wenn Omar eines in den wenigen Monaten in Boston gelernt hat, dann dies: Amerikaner lieben es, wenn sie Namen aussprechen können. Den Namen von jemand anderem 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 die ausschweifende Amerikanerin Gail verliebt. Was Gail und Omar vereint, ist das Gefühl, nur in ihrer Beziehung sie selbst sein zu können. Auch wenn ihre Vorstellung vom amerikanischen Traum nicht dieselbe ist ... »Die Heilige des nahenden Irrsinns« – der erste Roman, den Elif Shafak auf Englisch geschrieben hat – fasziniert mit all den Themen, die ihr gesamtes Werk prägen: Identität, Kultur und Sprache.

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.

Ella Rubinsteinová má manžela, tři dospívající děti a přijemný domov, zkrátka vše, co by z ní mělo dělat sebevědomou a spokojenou ženu. Přesto však Ella cítí ve svém životě prázdno – prázdno, které bylo kdysi vyplněné láskou. A tak když Ella čte rukopis o básníkovi Rúmím ze třináctého století a Šamsovi z Tabrízu a jeho čtyřiceti pravidlech života a lásky, rozhodne se změnit od základů svůj život a vydá se na cestu za tajemným autorem a jeho dílem. Cesta naplněná súfistickým mysticismem zavede Ellu i čtenáře do exotického světa, kde víra a láska jsou podrobeny srdce drásajícím zkouškám.