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A review by ajk925
The Last Island by Zülfü Livaneli
5.0
I straight up read this book in two sittings, I haven't really done that before.
The Last Island is a story about humanity at its best and at its worst. It's a story about how fear and mob mentality can divide people. I expected that this book would be a commentary of sorts, but I failed to anticipate the level that it would be so. That is not to say that kept me from enjoying this book, in fact quite the opposite.
The story, the characters, and the writing are all ultimately pretty simple. However the book as a whole is still engaging. And the moments of good prose are like some nice treats scattered throughout the story, but not the main focus. It reminded me of a fairy tale, but the big bad monster was capitalism.
The Last Island feels like a classic that has found renewed relevance in the present day, although in reality this book is not far removed from the present. Published in 2008, at a time where the beginnings of the Erdoğan regime in Turkey was starting to establish its stranglehold on the country, it still feels like a very current callout of said regime, and a reflection of politics as a whole.
I definitely recommend The Last Island if you're looking for a simple but engaging commentary on the human condition.
The Last Island is a story about humanity at its best and at its worst. It's a story about how fear and mob mentality can divide people. I expected that this book would be a commentary of sorts, but I failed to anticipate the level that it would be so. That is not to say that kept me from enjoying this book, in fact quite the opposite.
The story, the characters, and the writing are all ultimately pretty simple. However the book as a whole is still engaging. And the moments of good prose are like some nice treats scattered throughout the story, but not the main focus. It reminded me of a fairy tale, but the big bad monster was capitalism.
The Last Island feels like a classic that has found renewed relevance in the present day, although in reality this book is not far removed from the present. Published in 2008, at a time where the beginnings of the Erdoğan regime in Turkey was starting to establish its stranglehold on the country, it still feels like a very current callout of said regime, and a reflection of politics as a whole.
I definitely recommend The Last Island if you're looking for a simple but engaging commentary on the human condition.