The Bastard of Istanbul (by Elif Shafak)

I had never heard of the author of this book, Elif Shafak, nor had I heard of The Bastard of Istanbul. Its not the kind of title that would appeal to me at all if Id seen the book, either. But it was the novel assigned for this months local reading group, so I bought it from Awesome Books a few months ago, and started reading it just three days ago 

I liked the style immediately. The writing is crisp and incisive, with just enough description - some of it a tad ironic - to ensure that I...