This book is so good! The premise is that Tequila Leila has just been murdered and left in a trash can, but she still has cognizance for 10 minutes, 38 seconds. The first half of the book is character driven and tells her story and that of her five close friends. It's a novel of outsiders and found family, and there is a lot of smart social and gendered critique woven in. The second half takes a different turn and becomes not quite but almost a dark farce. It is moving and heartbreaking and also kind of funny. I was surprised by how much of a page turner it turned into without losing any of the literary quality.

According to the opening of this book, Leila, a prostitute in Instanbul, has been murdered but her brain will still exist for that amount of time mentioned. That alone, is intriguing enough to turn that first page. Then as you keep reading, the momentum pushes you until that last page.
It's a beautiful story in some respects. A group of five misfits find each other and provide the deeply needed love and support each provide. The theme that every person deserves, no matter what their role in life, dignity and respect, by all, is one that always resonates. but the author truly makes you reflect on what that means.
The injustice and ignorant adherence to rules ,under any circumstances, are examined. The cruelty and hatred are so well set out. Yet, even when the darkest depths of despair are encountered, the friends embark on a last chance for dignity of their beloved confidante.
Wow! What an amazing book!

I recieved an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book and will recommend it often!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.


wow... what an unique idea for a book. This book covers what goes through one's brain after they die... given the idea that their brain is still "active" for a time after they have died.

i loved the book. i really did. the writing was beautiful. and soo soooo unique.

A compelling novel from the brillant title to the characters wojuboffte pages.A murdered prostitutewho I the last ten minutes her brain stays alive.Sharing moments of her life in Istanbul.A boo so unique so memorable highly recommend.#netgalley#bloomsbury

Elif Shafak is a master storyteller. The descriptions of Istanbul shown over the course of several decades make the novel feels as if the reader is in a movie. Her characters leap off the pages, showering the reader with strong emotions. A beautiful book, offering insights into life in Istanbul, life and friendship highlights an author who has never failed to make this reader feel anything but awe.

A prostitute, badly beaten and left to die in a trash bin, recalls key moments in her life as her brain shuts down.

Structurally, 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World is a slow march to the gallows that would be almost unbearable were Shafak not such a compassionate, confident, spare writer. She doesn't construct beauty out of nothing; but rather shines light on it in its everyday form. The book's second half, which practically rollicks compared to the first, doesn't work for everyone, but I found it a necessary payoff.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA for the ARC in exchange for this review.

The title of this novel comes from the idea (research?) that says the “observed persistent brain activity in people who had died …. for as much as ten minutes and thirty-eight seconds.”

Shafak uses this time table to tell us what her character is thinking about and remembering during those 10 plus minutes. The convention isn't really necessary to tell a story of reflection, but it works well. And I loved that Shafak periodically reminds us of how much time is left before her character's brain stops working and we must exit the story of her life.

We know from the first words that our main character is dead.

In the first minute following her death, Tequila Leila’s consciousness began to ebb, slowly and steadily, like a tide receding from the shore. Her brain cells, having run out of blood, were now completely deprived of oxygen. But they did not shut down. Not right away. One last reserve of energy activated countless neurons, connecting them as though for the first time. Although her heart had stopped beating, her brain was resisting, a fighter till the end. It entered a state of heightened awareness, observing the demise of her body but not ready to accept its own end. Her memory surged forth, eager and diligent, collecting pieces of a life that she was speeding to a close. She recalled things she did not even know she was capable of remembering, things she believed to be lost forever. Time became fluid, a fast flow of recollections seeping into one another, the past and present inseparable.

We do not know how she died or whether the death will be solved. The book is a character portrait in the most unique way, and I loved it. I liked Leila from the start. I had compassion for her as a child. I liked her spunky nature as an adult. I liked the people she chose for friends and family. I was completely wrapped up in her life. And the fact that I knew she was dead, and that something terrible must have happened, only made me like her, and her five friends, more.

The book is intricate... chapters begin with tastes and smells that Leila associates with the particular scene she is revisiting. Her five friends have equally complex stories which we explore. And those 10 plus minutes provide structure, but only to the first half of the book. We get to see how the friends respond to her death in the second half.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and loved the quirky characters. It worked for me that they were each so unique and odd because it lightened the sadness of their stories.

Thank you to Netgalley, Bloomsbury Publishing and the author for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I've decided not to jump on the bandwagon and gush over this novel. I thought it was just okay and my two star rating reflects that opinion. The title and premise is original and clever but the story and writing to me wasn't extraordinary.
Sometimes I feel that reviewers and critiques feel the need to over rate books that bring to light horrible living conditions, crimes against humanity and political atrocities because of the attention it brings to these circumstances, but a book should also be reviewed on the content and writing within its pages.

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak is unlike anything I've read lately. It moved slowly and there was no mind blowing or overly exciting event that happened that kept me on the edge of my seat, but I actually enjoyed the back and forth of past and present, having everyone's life story explained at some point, and slowly seeing how Tequila Leila's friends decided to honor her in the end. The first part of the book mainly focuses on different parts of Leila's life and how she turned into the person she is while the second part is about how her friends learn to deal with the death of their friend. While we don't know the five as well as her, I still felt that Shafak showed us enough about how strong their bond became over the years for me to hang onto every word and I enjoyed following them along as well. This is my first book by Shafak but I can't wait to see what else she has.

The first and second halves of this book are quite different from one another, and unfortunately if you like one part, chances are you won't like other.

The first part focuses on the life of a prostitute. Her life is "passing before her eyes" as she lays dying for the 10 minutes, 38 seconds in the title. Each minute has a new scene that starts with an evocative sensory memory. I enjoyed the story of Leila, her tough upbringing and mostly the descriptions of Istanbul.

Unfortunately, eventually her brain stops functioning and her five friends, about whom we know a minimal amount, are left to carry the story. And since we barely know about them and care little, the rest of the book comes across like a madcap escapade as the friends make it their mission to give Leila's dead body a more suitable resting place than the one designated by the city.

The very end moved this book from the two star to the three star realm for me, but overall I am a bit puzzled as to how it is on the Booker shortlist. I am going with the very strong descriptive writing about Istanbul itself as the driving force.

"Sometimes where you feel most safe is where you least belong"

Even though I am Turkish, this is the first Elif Shafak book I've read. I had read the blurb and knew it took place during the last 10 minutes as a whore lay dying. The premise seemed interesting but I had no idea what to expect.

"Years later, she would come to think of this moment as the first time she realized that things were not always what they seemed. Just as the sour could hide beneath the sweet, or vide versa, within every sane mind, there was a trace of insanity, and within the depths of madness glimmered a sense of lucidity."

As it worked out, this was an excellent story of the journey the main character, Leila, takes growing up in Van with a devout dad married to two women and her journey from there to Istanbul where she ends up having a terrible life (as she was trying to run away from another terrible one.)

"Everyone seemed a little lost, vulnerable and unsure of themselves, whether they were educated or not, modern or not, Eastern or not. grown up or a child. That's what he reckoned, this boy. He, for one, always felt more comfortable next to people who weren't perfect in any way."

She makes some amazing friends along the way and the book also shares the background of each of these characters and the power of friendships to create tighter bonds than family.

"'It's a serious thing to believe in someone,' she said. .... 'You can't just say it like that, It's a big commitment to believe.'"

There is a lot of history in this book that takes place mostly in the background and sometimes in the foreground. A lot of moments of grief and horror with some moments of joy. Throughout the book Leila continues to be an amazingly rich character to follow where you root for her even as you know she's going to die.

"We must do what we can to mend our lives, and we owe that to ourselves - but we need to be careful not to break others while achieving that."

I loved every bit of this harrowing story and am really glad I read it. I look forward to reading more of her work.

With thanks to netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

So many really interesting things in this novel, starting with the reason for the title: the time it can take for a human brain to shut down after death. Who knew? Strong female characters abound in an Istanbul society that is not necessarily sympathetic to them. A unique and memorable plot and excellent writing will stay in my mind for a long time.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the ARC to read and review.

I can understand why this one is receiving mixed reviews. I loved the first part (The Mind), which focused on the life of Tequila Leila. We learn early on that Leila's mind is still active despite the fact that she is dead. During the remaining 10 minutes and 38 seconds, we are given some of the key details of Leila's life. The memories of each minute are organized around different tastes that were meaningful to her (watermelon, lemon and sugar, cardamom coffee and so on). Much of her life is sad, which leads her to the streets of Istanbul and sex work. However, there are many sweet moments, such as when she falls in love and her meetings with her five best friends who become her dearest family members. (Admittedly, these friends are a group of outsiders, composed of various stereotypes, which does feel a bit odd at times.)

Once Leila's 10 minutes have expired, we change gears (to The Body) and follow the movements of her friends as they work to bring Leila's body to a respectful resting place. This part of the book devolves into a bit of a caper and I enjoyed it less than the first act. Overall, though, I am glad that I tried this one. It's my first book by Shafak and I look forward to reading more of her work.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and Bloomsbury for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

The novel opens as the main character, Tequila Leila lies dying in a dumpster, murdered and abandoned. S takes the idea that one’s life passes before your eyes as you pass from life to death to heart. The bulk of the novel is the highlights of Leila’s life that come to her in her final 10 minutes and 38 seconds. Interspersed are the stories of her mother, her husband, and, most importantly, her five best friends. Leila dies alone and unvalued because she is a sex worker, but the author tells her story and those by her marginalized friends with great care, dignity and love. The novel addresses the problems of the patriarchy not only to women but also the problems of toxic masculinity and patriarchal norms to men and her mother as well. A novel that is both profound and profoundly beautiful.

Blog review post scheduled for 9/24 publication date.

When we first meet Leila, she is recently dead, lying in a dumpster in Istanbul, and despite her death she has quite a lot on her mind. Scientists have recently discovered the brain sustains electrical activity for some minutes after death, and during these ten minutes and thirty-eight seconds before Leila is completely gone, she is thinking back on the formative moments of her life and the people she's encountered.

For the first half of the book, we accompany Leila through these memories, watching her flee a childhood of sexual abuse and enter into a life of prostitution in Istanbul. Despite being a sex worker, Leila seems to establish a life of her own making, including creating her own family out of close friends she makes. She even falls in love and gets married. But you know how it all ends.

In the second half those close friends are trying to find and claim Leila's body and lay her to rest. The lengths they go to accomplish this are at times heartwarming and slapstick.

All of this takes place during important times in Turkey's history, and I feel like I learned something about a place I'm otherwise unfamiliar with. Highly recommended.

Elif Shafak's latest novel takes the reader to Istambul.
Five women face the consequences of living under a male dominated society.
Five.women struggling to free themselves from a patriarchal society.

I found the premise of the story interesting. 10 minutes 38 seconds refers to the time the brain continues to function after death. I believe we all heard of "life flashing by at the moment of death"

The novel begins with Leila, her body in a rubbish bin, Leila has been murdered, With her memories intact she remembers her very birth in a town far from Istambul, Van a small muslim town where patriarchy is the norm, as in many small towns surrounding Turkey. As the story progresses, each chapter is a minute less from 10 minutes 38 seconds.

Leila shares this novel in equal parts with Humeyra, Zaynap, Jameelah and Nalan, four women we will meet along with Leila. I liked how every woman was an equal with her story throughout the novel, five women friends.

Istambul can be unforgiving to girls lost in it's immensity, it's diversity of religion, extraordinary wealth and poverty. Lila will find her new home in Istambul's red district. A business licenced by the city.

Girls arriving from small towns surrounding Turkey are most vulnerable to sex traffickers, some survive through prostitution some die at the hands of such men.

This novel takes place in Turkey, sex trafficking takes place around the world.

The author Elif Shafak's novels have been banned in Turkey, for exposing the true face of this country who thrives to modernize itself yet still remains for the most part a patriarchal society in many ways. The author now lives in London where she is active in women's rights.

A must read, it is a well written story

Thank you to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for this arc

https://syviesenglishandfrenchbookblog.blogspot.com/2019/08/10-minutes-38-seconds-in-this-strange.html

'The possibility of an immediate and wholesale decimation of civilization was not as frightening as the simple realization that our individual passing had no impact on the order of things, and life would go on just the same with or without us. Now that, she had always thought, was terrifying.'

We begin at the end for Tequila Leila, ‘as she was known to her friends and her clients.’ Working, before her sorry death, at one of the oldest licensed brothels in Istanbul she is no longer in her apartment, now she lays dead, vanishing further away from the here and now, ‘inside a metal rubbish bin with rusty handles and flaking paint.’ How did she end up discarded like trash, less than trash? Her group of misfits and best friends Sinan, Nalan , Zaynab , Humeyra and Jameelah don’t know yet what has happened, they intend to find out. Her friends, nothing more than garbage themselves according to the country and times they live in, the sole family she has left-at least that will acknowledge her, are the ones left behind to care about what has happened to her, just another dead prostitute to the citizens, but so much more to them. They don’t have rights, they must find a way (of course it’s a crime) to give her a proper burial, they may be her true family, but not legally.

How did you get here Leila? The mind sticks around and soon there is an influx of memories, the earliest is her birth and through that ‘slippery passage’ the transgression that followed against her own mother is recalled. In fact, though this novel is about outcasts, and many will focus most on the transvestite Nostalgia Nalan and Zaynab the dwarf, whose stories are very engaging, it is Leila’s mother, aunt and uncle’s sordid tale that clutched at me. It is here that everything went awry, where the hope for a different sort of life, one free of ‘shame’ was made impossible. Here lies the wreckage, and how my heart broke for Lelia’s mother, all the lies that darkened the family. We learn who truly bears the mark of shame, and it isn’t in Lelia’s decomposing body.

Her first mistake was being born a girl to her father’s second wife, and what are women if not vessels to deliver cherished sons? And if they cannot, well the elders assured Leila’s father that the Qur’an allows a man to have up to four wives. What good are wives who have only miscarriages? God help you, woman, if you are a flawed. This time Binnaz (second wife) took care to heed old wives tales and superstitions, leaving nothing to chance. Yet it is the shock of how she is rewarded for her efforts that has lasting effects on Lelia, who has two mothers. What rights does a second wife have? None. She must be an obedient wife, who is she to complain? No one, nothing, just a mere woman. All Leila’s father Houran wants is for his baby girl (though he desires a perfect son) to one day make him proud, “true to your religion, true to your nation, true to your father.” But how do you measure loyalty, pride, obedience, and chastity when others are bent on fouling the waters? Just who truly is a shame to their religion, to Allah? Rather than an example of piety, she is a challenge to her father, a thing to be cast away and disowned and surely through no fault of her own.

As her heart ceases to beat she recalls only the lonely child she was. The severity of her father, the odd behavior of her deeply trouble, sad, mentally unstable aunt and the complex relationship her mother had with her. It was a house of whispers, the women controlled by her father’s beliefs, and the simmering anger a confusion to Lelia who is sheltered from the truth. After a terrible abuse, Leila loses both her family and love….

The streets are mean, it is in the brothels where hustlers bring her to find refuge and here Leila loses all hope of ever being a proper Muslim woman. It is also in this life where she finds her true family, and so begins their heavy stories, no lighter nor happier than Leila’s. These are the people tourists don’t see, and the ones the citizens would rather ignore or use, the disposable women. What happens to Leila is brutal, meant to expose the violence against women, but if you go back, isn’t what happened to Leila’s powerless mother just as violent in it’s own godless way? There is hypocrisy particularly in religious fervor, in the existence of these sinful places that are denied, and her friends lives are heavy, take “Osman” Nalan’s transformation, it is hard to contemplate in a time, place against women. Imagine trying to survive in her shoes.

It’s not solely those born native to the soil who face being subjugated by men. Some arrive there through trickery, as Jameelah’s story has her forced into our modern form of slavery. If you’re not forced into marriage, another brand of slavery for some as Humeyra can attest to , then you’re trafficked like Jameelah. Too, women subjugate each other as much as they uplift. We see this in the hatred between Jameelah’s stepmother and the cruelty Suzan heaps upon Binnaz, because I can’t think of a crueler thing. So while the tight bond and love Leila and her friends have, even despite death, there is shame too between women within this tale.

This is a world where fathers seek spiritual masters, where women are defeated, and being an outcast can end in brutal murder. Where unless you have family, you are buried like a pauper, trash. It’s an interesting blend of family, abuse, mental illness, politics, religion, feminism, society, poverty, wealth -there is a hell of a lot happening here. It’s hard for those of us living in the Western World to comprehend being punished for crimes against us, living in fear of religion. I hate to say this too, but in how men are teased by their elders it certainly fuels the fire, that man feels a push to punish his women… Women still have a long way to go when it comes to feminism, but in other parts of the world, you die for your dissension towards those in power. The filth upon you, put there by rape, is your fault and can never be washed clean. It’s unconscionable. These are places you do not speak up, as you see when Leila tries, look how that ends.

Her friends stories are told, and in fleeting memories Leila speaks but I was far more interested in her as a child. I felt I lost her when she grew up, however her friends fill that hole. They make up the ‘immodest sinners’ of these ‘immoral times’. Still, what they are forced to do is a freedom from where they escaped, lives among the ruins. Elif Shafak gives voice to those never heard, after-all, they don’t exist right?

Publication Date: September 24, 2019

Bloomsbury USA

Compelling novel about outsiders, mostly women and non-binary, in contemporary Istanbul. Realistic but with a touch of elegant fantasy. Highly recommended.

Tequila Leila, a sex worker in Istanbul, has been brutally murdered. Her heart has stopped but her brain continues to function for 10 minutes 38 seconds. As she slips away, she tells her story through recounting memories of salient events of her life. We see her birth into a dysfunctional family, abuse at the hands of a relative, and formation of close bonds of friendship with five other social outcasts. We find out the reasons behind her flight from her small hometown of Van to Istanbul, and how she became a prostitute. The story then shifts to the group of friends, who conduct a well-intentioned escapade to give Leila a proper burial.

Şafak’s prose is expressive and insightful. Her vivid descriptions are filled with sensual details of the smells, tastes, and textures of Leila’s environment. She also includes historical references about Turkey and the Middle East, which educate, inform, and add local color. Although it is centered around a rather macabre premise, once the story gets going, the idea behind it subsides and it is easy to become engrossed in Şafak’s sophisticated storytelling. The first part of the book is structured into one-minute segments of memory, alternating with the backstories of Leila’s five eccentric friends. This structure is very effective in focusing the narrative on the essential information to understand Leila’s life, motivations, and how she ended up as a murder victim. The characters are beautifully drawn, and each friend has an important role in the second part that goes on after Leila’s death. I particularly enjoyed the way the friends love and support each other. The friends’ burial caper infuses a dose of dark humor and provides relief from the heavier content.

Themes of this book include bonds formed through friendships (which can be even more important when family disappoints); the exploitation of sex workers and lack of a system that addresses the root causes; the dynamics of power; and how hard life can be for those viewed as “different.” It takes place in the 20th century, but the topics and themes are eminently relevant in today’s world. Though it is about death, it is to the author’s credit that it ultimately feels life-affirming and hopeful, a story of unbreakable human spirit in the face of injustice. Leila becomes a catalyst for positive change in the lives of her friends. This is one of the best books I’ve read so far this year.