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neenor's review against another edition
3.0
This is a hard book for me to review, partly because I feel like my opinion isn’t the one you need to hear. I’m quite ignorant of Turkish culture, so I’m sure there are a lot of things that happened in this book that I, as a Brit, didn’t appreciate. I understand it’s importance and it’s power for many Turkish women, and I understand how controversial it was - and still is - for many people. However, I can’t relate to that, and I feel like did change the read for me.
I liked this novel more than I disliked it - but part of me thinks that’s because I was SO desperate to enjoy it. I mean, on the surface it is exactly my kind a book, but the execution was poor. You could see what the author intended to build up to in the first couple of chapters, but after a while the intent was lost, and it just appeared a bit stilted. Plus, I felt that the tablets and the letters added nothing to the story - in fact, they made it even more disjointed, as there didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for it. The book could have done with being 150 pages shorter, which would have made it a lot more snappy.
I know I’ve focused on the negatives, but there definitely were positives for me. I liked how individualised the characters of Lilla, Maryam and Amira were - they each had their own story from the get go, and although it wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped, I felt like some thought really had been put into the characters. I also liked the way the chapters were structured, although I know this is a bit debatable - every chapter opened with the ending, almost also including a very cheesy line such as “But little did we know what was coming” or “And then she told us her story”. But it was kind of cute, and at least it continued for most of the novel. It felt like one of the more planned aspects of the book.
Overall, I’m very torn about this book - but I loved the premise, and I have gone out and bought some books by other Turkish authors, as I’m hoping I will come across similar themes that are potentially better executed.
I liked this novel more than I disliked it - but part of me thinks that’s because I was SO desperate to enjoy it. I mean, on the surface it is exactly my kind a book, but the execution was poor. You could see what the author intended to build up to in the first couple of chapters, but after a while the intent was lost, and it just appeared a bit stilted. Plus, I felt that the tablets and the letters added nothing to the story - in fact, they made it even more disjointed, as there didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for it. The book could have done with being 150 pages shorter, which would have made it a lot more snappy.
I know I’ve focused on the negatives, but there definitely were positives for me. I liked how individualised the characters of Lilla, Maryam and Amira were - they each had their own story from the get go, and although it wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped, I felt like some thought really had been put into the characters. I also liked the way the chapters were structured, although I know this is a bit debatable - every chapter opened with the ending, almost also including a very cheesy line such as “But little did we know what was coming” or “And then she told us her story”. But it was kind of cute, and at least it continued for most of the novel. It felt like one of the more planned aspects of the book.
Overall, I’m very torn about this book - but I loved the premise, and I have gone out and bought some books by other Turkish authors, as I’m hoping I will come across similar themes that are potentially better executed.
lubica_p's review against another edition
2.0
The first around 80 pages are great. A road trip story focusing on four women from Middle Eastern countries is not something I come across every day. However, the structure is too messy and there are many unnecessary passages. Overall the book could use a thorough edit. It's sprinkled with some wonderful (and biting) commentary but that doesn't make up for the unwieldy structure.
jan_coco_day's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
cwgrieves's review against another edition
3.0
A wonderful story, with fantastic characters. The translation and editing let the book down a bit though.
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