10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World

Elif Shafak

This book is a beautifully written, but unflinching account of sexual abuse, friendship, fear, power and love during the last 45 years of political, religious and cultural upheaval in Turkey. And its final quarter is a sensitive yet slapstick burial attempt that really worked for me, though I sometimes hated myself for laughing. PLEASE don't be put off by the book's title or blurb, just read it and recommend to all friends and book groups.

Extract
On the nights when she was mistreated by a client, she would still find the strength to hold herself up, knowing that her friends with their very presence, would come with ointment for her scrapes and bruises; on days when she wallowed in self-pity, her chest cracking open, they would gently pull her up and breathe life into her lungs.
Parallels
  • Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin
  • My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
  • The Great Dictator - the film
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Violence
Explicit sexual content