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A review by kate66
Honour by Elif Shafak
4.0
Half of this book was spent gnashing my teeth and the rest of it bemoaning the fact the end was coming before we'd reached the bit I was interested in.
Honour is clearly a reference to so-called honour killings. It is clear from the start that the woman who has been murdered is Pembe and her killer is her son who has stabbed his mother to death because she has been seen with another man.
I truly dislike the phrase "honour killing" as if its not murder, plain and simple. The other thing I really dislike is the disparity between what is allowed for men and for women (and its not so long ago in this country (UK) that women were considered the property of her father or her husband. It makes my blood boil that a man can do what he likes but a woman could lose her life simply for being friends with another man. But then I do not understand 95% of religions so ...
Shafak's brilliance is that she gives you characters who you truly feel for. Not that I felt bad for the son in prison. I'd have thrown away the key.
But still, this is good book that will make you feel things very strongly. My only criticism is that I wanted it split more equally into before and after the act. The story focuses mainly on the before and the after felt rushed. There's a pretty hefty curveball towards the end that I didn't feel was explored enough. But this is a purely personal point of view. Otherwise I just gnashed and shouted at the book (always a good sign).
I listened to the audio version which was very well read by Colleen Pendergast.
Honour is clearly a reference to so-called honour killings. It is clear from the start that the woman who has been murdered is Pembe and her killer is her son who has stabbed his mother to death because she has been seen with another man.
I truly dislike the phrase "honour killing" as if its not murder, plain and simple. The other thing I really dislike is the disparity between what is allowed for men and for women (and its not so long ago in this country (UK) that women were considered the property of her father or her husband. It makes my blood boil that a man can do what he likes but a woman could lose her life simply for being friends with another man. But then I do not understand 95% of religions so ...
Shafak's brilliance is that she gives you characters who you truly feel for. Not that I felt bad for the son in prison. I'd have thrown away the key.
But still, this is good book that will make you feel things very strongly. My only criticism is that I wanted it split more equally into before and after the act. The story focuses mainly on the before and the after felt rushed. There's a pretty hefty curveball towards the end that I didn't feel was explored enough. But this is a purely personal point of view. Otherwise I just gnashed and shouted at the book (always a good sign).
I listened to the audio version which was very well read by Colleen Pendergast.