BOOKCLUB NOTES: 10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak

BOOKCLUB NOTES: 10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak 🌊

THE BOOK: this split the group, which we relished! Some loved the book and its emotional pull, others found the story to be clunky and a bit unrealistic.

We agreed that Istanbul is an important character - a vivid presence throughout - as we glimpse its dark underworld. The story is a snapshot in time and some of us wanted more depth to the characters. Some were put off by the absurd story and metaphors (in the second half at least) but others felt the book succeeded in making us feel something.

Shafak weaves in Istanbul’s history and politics, as well as a more sinister view of its treatment of people on the fringes of society. Ultimately, this is a book about what we’re willing to do to protect each other and survive, even after being failed by so many.

THE WINES: ‘The first memory that came to her mind was about salt – the feel of it on her skin and the taste of it on her tongue’. We paired the saltiest wine we could think of to Leila’s recollection of entering the world, a moment shaped by trauma which would continue throughout her life. Volandeira 2023 is Albariño from Galicia. The grapes are from Constantina Sotelo’s closest plot to the sea, producing rich and salty white wine which was a huge hit on both nights.

‘As Leila’s brain fought on, she remembered the taste of soil’. We chose an earthy Slovakian Blaufrankisch to represent her sensory memory here, mirroring the harsh and gritty reality of her life in Istanbul. Just Enjoy Red 2023 is Blaufrankisch with the addition of Welschriesling (a white grape), so the earthy characteristics are balanced with summer berries and floral touches. A classy and complex red which is delicious chilled.