Shafak’s novel has a simple premise, love. And it might seem like a cliche, but it just works for this beautiful story. Defne, a Turkish woman, and Kostas, a Greek man, fall in love at the peak of the conflict in Cyrpus in 1974. Their love is helped along by a beautiful mixed Turkish and Greek couple Yusuf and Yiorgos and a little tavern called “The Happy Fig”. Continue reading
Category Archives: historical
Exploring Australia’s Colonial History: A review of “Devotion” by Hannah Kent
Devotion is an Australian colonial saga. It chronicles the Prussian and German immigrants who travelled to Australia, specifically to South Australia, in the 1800s. It is about love, loss, religious persecution, and the Australian landscape. Continue reading
Book Review of Curtis Sittenfeld’s “Rodham”: When Fiction and Fact Meet in a Novel
It was a difficult read for me for many reasons. Firstly, I could not help but despair and wonder if a female president of the United States of America can only exist in fiction. Continue reading
Four Shakespearean-Era Tributes Hidden in Maggie O’Farrell’s Award Winning “Hamnet”
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. Maggie O’Farrell won the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2020 for Hamnet and if you have read her novel, it is easy to see why. It is not easy to take on … Continue reading
"Paris Savages" Review: how do we write about uncomfortable history?
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. I picked up a copy of Paris Savages when I was in Hobart, Tasmania this February. Thinking about how easy it was to fly there and how care-free we were is a … Continue reading
Review of “Crises of Democracy”: Can we predict the fall of democratic institutions?
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. Crises of Democracy written by Professor of Politics, Adam Przeworski could not have been written at a more critical moment in our contemporary political climate. All around the world, it seems that … Continue reading
“The Crofter and the Laird”: an insight to Scottish Island life
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. The Crofter and the Laird is a different kind of travel memoir. John McPhee travels to the Scottish island of Colonsay with his family to get closer to his own family’s Scottish … Continue reading
“The Boys Who Woke Up Early”: a reminder of America’s complicated past and present
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. When I read books, sometimes I know exactly what I want to highlight in my review and other times, ideas and themes from the novel need time to grow and develop in … Continue reading
“Dracul”: framing Dracula in a different light
This review will contain spoilers. So many spoilers. Even though I love that you have come to my blog to see my review, don’t read this before you read Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker. Go, read it. I’ll wait. Continue reading
Yaa Gyasi in Zurich and a Review of “Homegoing”
Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. Clicking through for additional information or to make a purchase may result in a small commission. Anyone who lives abroad knows how hard it can be to engage with literature from your mother tongue. For me, living in Switzerland means that German is a regular part of my … Continue reading
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