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daisyfont's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Transphobia, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Eating disorder, Sexual violence, Vomit, Violence, Rape, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Grief, Racism, Child death, Death, and Self harm
uhhjeepers's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This could be recency bias, but this might be the best book I’ve ever read for school. It was an extremely difficult read at points, but I feel so rewarded by the experience regardless.
Leila and her friends are characters that I truly believe will stick with me forever. This book is filled with difficult topics, but it is also filled with so much heart. Love and friendship seep out of this book.
I’m left with an overwhelming feeling of appreciation for the people in my life. Nobody is companionless, and this book forces you to know that, even when you’re at your loneliest.
Graphic: Hate crime, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Incest, Death, Rape, Sexual content, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Racism, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Transphobia, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, Miscarriage, and Trafficking
Minor: Pregnancy
cartermon4's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Classism, Transphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Suicide, Sexual harassment, and Sexual content
Minor: Trafficking and Drug use
mariaminthebooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Rape, and Transphobia
jacq_s's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Rape, Incest, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Murder
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
aided by an interesting, intriguing structure, the novel's first part reads like snapshots from the main character leila's life. while initially very slow going - the pace making me actually put down the book for 2 weeks - things start to pick up once we get out of leila's hometown, leila thrusted into the wider world - for better and for worse - while also gradually learning abt the five friends she so treasures.
i rly enjoy reading abt istanbul thru the POVs of characters marginalized by society, seeing the city thru a different, less sanitized perspective, yet a sense of love for the city, interestingly, still pervades. shafak spotlights those rarely seen or heard in the mainstream, let alone humanely, in this novel, be it those who are turkish and arent, esp the more recent and pressing refugees. the book's period of upheaval also serves as a revealing, rollicking - though at times painful - historical archive.
what i love most abt this book is perhaps the relationship between leila and her 5 friends, both individually and as a group. theirs is a bond deeper and closer than those of their respectively wretched families, and it's surprisingly touching. in a society that shuns them and wrongs go unpunished, they band tgt to survive, find joy and stand up for themselves.
this is an enjoyable book thats as much abt the characters as the city of istanbul they live in, in all its glory and misery. though i personally think there's too much exposition, some parts could be trimmed, and the initial pace too slow, i dont merely feel but also learn a lot from this book, and thats always a good reading experience in my book.
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Misogyny, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Death, Transphobia, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Mental illness, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Trafficking, Violence, Murder, and Racism
Minor: Miscarriage and Infidelity
chl0b1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Physical abuse, Hate crime, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Grief, Domestic abuse, Incest, and Mental illness
alomie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I found this story very moving and hard to read in parts a tragic story and her abrupt death. There is hope mixed in there with the 5 friends and their stories but also some great sadness.
A comment on Sex work in Istanbul, the struggles of the trans community and the harsh realities of a repressed nation and its obvious disdain for women.
Graphic: Abortion, Body shaming, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Addiction, Child death, Homophobia, Grief, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Death, Incest, Trafficking, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Self harm
manasvini's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
The concept, the narrative, the cast of diverse characters and stories, the vivid and immersive descriptions of Istanbul
What I disliked:
The sheer amount of trauma, which almost started feeling like sensationalism, especially when accompanied with little to no reflection on it. (I wish I had read the trigger warnings before hand.) How much the first part slogged in comparison to the second and third parts.
It was a good read but does not make me motivated to read other works by Shafak.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Grief, Incest, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexism, Transphobia, and Violence
Moderate: Transphobia, Abandonment, Alcohol, Body shaming, Drug use, Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Car accident, Cursing, Deadnaming, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Infertility, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Outing, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, and Torture
amaya_jam's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Sexual assault and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Sexual content, Confinement, and Self harm
Minor: Trafficking and Child death