Scan barcode
A review by alicegns
Honour by Elif Shafak
4.0
Mesmerizing and brilliant are two words that best describe the beautiful narrative that Elif Shafak encapsulates in her novels. Just like The Bastard of Istanbul, this book speaks about cultural identities and personal experiences in a way that is both original and captivating. The Guardian’s review of the book likens Shafak to Isabelle Allende, and I concur. While the style is not the same, and Shafak doesn’t do magical realism, there’s something about Honour that reminded me of Allende and her deeply moving novels.
The concept of honour has another meaning altogether in the East, and Shafak’s novel does an incredible job of pointing out how the unwritten laws of honour in Muslim societies have an impact on women’s (and men’s) lives.
Honour follows the story of Pembe, a woman born in Turkey who moved to London with her husband and had three children there. Even though they are all born in Britain, the children couldn’t be more different, and the eldest son, Iskender, has a tough time navigating through life in London while doing his best to be “a good Muslim.” When Pembe’s husband leaves for good, Iskender feels that it’s his job to protect the family’s honour. At this point, tragedy is only a matter of time.
The prose is beautiful, as I mentioned before, but some readers, myself included, may find the final plot twist a bit trite. This doesn’t change the fact that the novel is a powerful, insightful look into the life of a family of immigrants.
Living in a suspended world, always looking back to their place of origin, and never being able to really integrate in the new community, the family has the story of millions of uprooted individuals who were lured by the West and its way of life only to discover that you need to let go of the past and lose yourself in the process of rebuilding yourself into someone rather unrecognizable. Very few can do it, so the rest are condemned to tragic lives in which the geography of the soul plays a lead role.
The concept of honour has another meaning altogether in the East, and Shafak’s novel does an incredible job of pointing out how the unwritten laws of honour in Muslim societies have an impact on women’s (and men’s) lives.
Honour follows the story of Pembe, a woman born in Turkey who moved to London with her husband and had three children there. Even though they are all born in Britain, the children couldn’t be more different, and the eldest son, Iskender, has a tough time navigating through life in London while doing his best to be “a good Muslim.” When Pembe’s husband leaves for good, Iskender feels that it’s his job to protect the family’s honour. At this point, tragedy is only a matter of time.
The prose is beautiful, as I mentioned before, but some readers, myself included, may find the final plot twist a bit trite. This doesn’t change the fact that the novel is a powerful, insightful look into the life of a family of immigrants.
Living in a suspended world, always looking back to their place of origin, and never being able to really integrate in the new community, the family has the story of millions of uprooted individuals who were lured by the West and its way of life only to discover that you need to let go of the past and lose yourself in the process of rebuilding yourself into someone rather unrecognizable. Very few can do it, so the rest are condemned to tragic lives in which the geography of the soul plays a lead role.