NAMED A MOST-ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE MILLIONS
Set in a changing Istanbul, this rediscovered 1940s classic from a pioneering Turkish author tells the story of a forbidden love and its consequences. Raised by her grandmother in one of the famed yalıs, elegant yet crumbling, that line the Bosphorus, Celile occupies a unique space between the old world of the Ottoman Empire and the new world of the Republic. She drifts through ten years of marriage, reserved even with her husband, never tempted to stray from the safe path of respectability. And then one night, intoxicated by a soulful tango, she is suddenly seized with a mad passion for another man, whose reckless pursuit of her should offend but doesn’t. Torn between two men who want to possess her, Celile attempts to live a life true to herself, always keenly aware of the limits placed on her as a woman.
In the Shadow of the Yalı marks the highly anticipated English-language debut of feminist writer and activist Suat Derviş. Her sensitive, strikingly modern portrayal of a love affair, with its frank emphasis on the influence of money, provides a fascinating contrast to classic tales of infidelity such as
Anna Karenina and
Madame Bovary.
"Set in 1926 when the value of money plummeted to its lowest, this rediscovered classic from a pioneering Turkish author tells the story of a forbidden love and its consequences. When was it that Celile became aware of those feelings that gripped her heart; the distressing feelings that filled her heart, causing it to overflow? She had no idea. Suddenly there was someone bringing both pain and joy to her life. Celile plunges into this fire that will consume her, into Muhsin's love, like a child walks into a fire without any fear, ignorant of what fire actually is. In this tale of a married woman who begins a secret relationship at a tango party, Suat Derviðs's penetrating descriptions are so direct and realist, she seems to be depicting a love affair from a Marxist perspective. In contrast to Anna Karenina and Vronsky's love affair, in which the negative influence of money is not emphasized, Celile struggles against financial helplessness as well as traditional values. But she does not wallow in dreams like Madame Bovary. In the Shadow of the Yali marks the highly anticipated English-language debut of activist and writer Suat Derviðs (1905-1972), who charts the journey of this remarkably modern heroine with sensitivity and verve"--
131524386
