The Bastard of Istanbul

By: Elif Shafak

Narrated by: Alix Dunmore

Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Bastard of Istanbul by Edif Shafak.  

One rainy afternoon in Istanbul, a woman walks into a doctor's surgery. 'I need to have an abortion', she announces. She is 19 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 40s, 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. 

©2019 Elif Shafak (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

"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)

Distracting details

Too many distracting details in an other wise intriguing story. Taught me so much about Armenians and the Ottoman Empire.

Amazing

Such a well written and interesting book, a must read! You won’t be able to put it down!

Really lovely!

I really enjoyed listening to this book. Good story, flows well with beautifully written descriptions. I am definitely a fan of Elif Shafak, and perhaps her translator too. Alix Dunmore did a really good job differentiating each character in the book.

I enjoyed this book from beginning to end

I have a private Amazon wish list for books that have been recommended to me or that I have read about somewhere. It is a kind of list of books I ought to read. And so The Bastard of Istanbul found its way into that list a couple of years ago, and I cannot remember why.

Recently I bought this title as an audiobook. I am so glad I did.

The story is set in Istanbul. It starts in about 1985, when Zeliha, aged 19, goes to an abortion clinic. Except the termination does not take place. At the same time, in Arizona, Rose, who is divorced from an Armenian American husband by whom she has a daughter Armanoush (who Rose calls Amy), meets a young Turkish student.

Move forward to 2005. Zeliha has a daughter, Asya. Armanoush visits Istanbul and stays with her father’s family – yes you guessed it. And so the story becomes about the intertwined stories of these families, going back to the time of the Ottoman genocide against the Armenians. And all the history comes to a climax in the present.

This novel is very well written. I have just checked, and it seems Shafak wrote this novel in English (I had been going to compliment the translator!). The narration by Alix Dunmore is excellent.

I recommend The Bastard of Istanbul very highly. 10 out of 10.

Powerful, seductive writing

My second by this author (10 minutes...), a deep dive into a world of the Feminine and Turkish/Armenian history. I was enthralled and appalled, her characters live so vividly (Alix Dunmore is superb!)
A couple of months back I read Mary Ann Sieghart's "The Authority Gap" and only then found out that many men simply won't read a book by a woman ! You fools. I am a 70 year old retired teacher, male, white, irish and various other labels. Elif Shafak writes about people, she moves me.....thank you.

Very engaging story and characters

I really enjoyed this book. The characters, their stories, the backdrop of the city, were all wonderful. Really sad at times but hilariously funny at others. Just a wonderful book. This is the first I have read by this author but I purchased another straight after this.

Touching and soul forming

Amazing story, educating of a topic that is very much forgotten and made forgotten by those in power today and throughout the second half of the last century. Lot to learn for both sides but mainly to learn of the real fate and lives of the millions affected by the wheels turned by the majority ignoring the minority.
Wonderful narration! Thank you!

Beautifully written as ever

I love Elif Shafak's writing, its mix of history, culture, humour, social commentary with its dark twists and all-pervading sense of timeless sisterhood.
Although I found this book slow to start, with a mildly irritating myriad of indistinguishable names to grapple with, it drew me in and kept me rapt for its shocking conclusion.
The downside for me was the speed of narration. Elif Shafak's writing is so beautiful you want to savour it, and I found I was missing the best of it just trying to keep up as the narrator thundered along like a steam train. It was rather more difficult trying to concentrate on all the non-English names, to keep up with who is who which made it all a bit stressful in the beginning. I'm glad I persevered, though because I find this author's novels stay with me long after I've finished them and challenge the way I view other societies.

Long

I struggled with its length and eventually just starting skipping bits. Cant say I enjoyed it.

Great book from a great author

Loved it, Elif Shafak is amazing, check out her Desert island disc interview and TED talks

aced it again...

another really enjoyable listen, and actually my new favourite from Elif Shafek. also really enjoy the narration by Alix Dunmore

Wow!!!

I am in awe of Elif Shefak for being able to create such a powerful story.

Cleverly weaving together the stories of different families and cultures.
Raising so many issues, as we follow parallel national and personal themes that raise similar questions. Should the children be protected from the crimes of their parents or should they face them and acknowledge the shame and horror. Sharing the burden of that knowledge between all involved in their different ways?
I have American Armenian relatives so for me it felt even more relevant and such an important book about past, present and individual and collective identity and trauma.

I really liked the narration. she brought the different characters to life

I loved it and recommend everyone reads this book

An emotional historical family journey

Elif Shafak is a brilliant storyteller. A teller of history, family dynamics and tragedy. This is the Turkish/Armenia tale tells us how bloodline and histories are intertwined. They’re never separate. You cannot separate the oppressed from the oppressor as they’re often woven together by blood. A story about women who have to negotiate their value and purpose in a male dominated society. A society which has one foot in Western culture and another in Islamic conservatism. A great read.