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*Now, onto this month’s Reading Reflection!*
This was my first book by Turkish author Ayşegül Savaş, whom I first heard about from
. She has impeccable taste when it comes to reading, so I wanted to try one of Savaş’ novels, and this was the only one available at my local library.I admit to always being a little nervous about trying an author that a friend reveres. Did Savaş live up to the hype? Let’s find out…
August Book: The Anthropologists by Ayşegül Savaş
First Impressions
As I say, I had very high hopes for this novel, and was afraid of being disappointed. I knew nothing of the storyline or style before starting it, but the cover was gorgeous! I think this must be a British or European cover, as some of my book friends in the US hadn’t come across it before.
Opening Lines
‘In a moment of panic, we decided to look for a home. We’d been in the city for several years by then, and from time to time we worried that we weren’t living by the correct set of rules, that we should be making our lives sturdy. I worried more than Manu did, but he often acquiesced to my apprehension.’
Story/Plot
The novel tells the story of Asya and Manu, a young married couple living in an unnamed city. They are immigrants, both from different countries, though these are also, interestingly, not revealed to us.
Told through Asya’s first-person narrative, the story revolves around their day-to-day lives in the city, the friends they meet, including Ravi, who we are told is another “foreigner,” and with whom they spend a lot of time hanging out with in the park, the bars, the restaurants and their rented apartment.
They also have an endearing friendship with an elderly woman, Tereza, who lives in their building, and with whom they spend evenings, sharing meals and reading poetry. Asya’s friend Lena makes a regular appearance, as do both Asya and Manu’s parents when they come to visit, and Asya’s grandmother, who she misses and enjoys regular weekly calls with. Much is revealed about the difficulties of living apart from family members, the guilt that this can engender, and the things the couple miss out on, such as birthdays and celebrations.
Asya, a documentary film-maker, has received a grant to make a documentary, and she regularly visits the local park in the city to film the park-goers and interview them, asking what the park means to them. The couple are also looking to buy their own home in the city, and the story weaves around their viewings of various apartments. The book opens on their ‘moment of panic’ to buy a home as Asya realises it’s maybe time “to make a life, as some people called it.”
Pace & Style
This is a book of literary fiction and as such, it isn’t a particularly plot-driven novel. It has a lovely flow to it, and the pace felt just right. It didn’t take long to read.
Interestingly, rather than chapters, the book contains a series of headings related to ideas around an anthropology study, such as ‘Urban Costume’ and ‘Principles of Kinship’. I loved this idea! It made sense for the title and ideas within the book, and allowed for exploration of Asya and Manu’s experiences.
Some of the titles are returned to again and again, such as ‘In the Park,’ allowing for ideas to be explored further. The sections containing apartment viewings are called ‘Future Selves,’ and it feels like these represent the couple moving away from their beginnings as students in the city and attempting to grow into fully-formed adults, putting down roots and possibly starting a family, though this is something they have not yet decided on. These sections help to thread the novel together.
The text within these headings is around a page or so. I like this style of book, as it makes for a really nice way to dip in and out when you only have a short time to read.
Themes
Estrangement. Attempts to find community and family away from home. The immigrant experience. City life. That ordinary moments contain multitudes, and that the tiny, infinitesimal elements of our lives, the things we repeat daily with those closest to us, are the things that matter.
Asya continually tries to think of rituals they have as their own little “family,” such as having breakfast together, beers with Ravi, and watching detective movies. She collects these small motifs as a way to ground her in the life they have chosen together.
Stand-Out Quotations
‘It often seemed to me that our life was unreal, and I summoned the anthropologist to make it seem otherwise.’
‘This was the other thing: it seemed that our interests could be legitimised only if we made something of them—a book, an exhibit. We often said what a shame this was; we romanticised artists of past decades, doing work with great joy and creativity without turning it into a product. Still, we belonged to our own times.’
I loved this sentiment. It is such a thoughtful observation of how we often view our passions, which seem to only exist to be shared online or in some other profitable way, rather than just honouring them for the joy they bring. Such as Ravi in the novel, who has a glorious collection of postcards, posters and photographs he finds at flea markets and on the street.
‘My mother and grandmother were always telling me to focus on my own life. I agreed with them, but I didn’t quite know where my life began and how far it extended. I didn’t want to risk cutting off any vital parts.’
This reminded me of the way we are when we are young and don’t fully know who we are yet.
‘All this time, we were waiting. For the news of some momentous change, that we were being summoned to serve in real life; that the time for playing games was over. We lived with the abstract shape of the news, informing us that it had arrived. We lived with the imaginary shock. Maybe, I thought, it would also be a relief: Here it was, finally. Here was life itself.’
Final Thoughts
In this book, Savaş has created a beautiful small world that I didn’t want to leave.
The novel is a meditation on modern life and modern love; a narrative which despite its simplicity contains a maturity of ideas and thought beneath the surface.
The narrator Asya, though still figuring things out, is wise and fully aware of life and the things that matter. I won’t spoil the ending for anyone wanting to read it, but it touched me on a really deep level; not because it had some huge climax, or because the language was pretty or atmospheric. But because it was REAL. These characters really lived and breathed on the page for me; I was rooting for them to find their place and the community they craved. The ending was a perfect summation of what a well-lived, simple, honest life can look like.
In case it isn’t already obvious, I loved this book.
Let me know in the comments…
What you’ve been reading (always my favourite part of the monthly reflections!)
Any recommendations on which Savaş book to read next.
Whether you’ve read this book and if so, what you thought?
Talking books is literally my favourite pastime 😂
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A Narrative of their Own
Read the book a few months ago having pocked it up on a visit to Paris. I quite enjoyed it but I did find it a bit difficult to relate to the characters and their direct experiences. She does have a lovely reflective way of writing though.
This was a great read. It really highlights that life is lived in those little moments between each other, not in the big gestures. So well written.