Author:Beale,Patricia Beale
A warm wartime saga of one girl's quest for a better life.
Queenie May Ellis vows to herself at the age of eight that one day she will escape, get away from Ma and her life of drudgery. Life is hard in the backstreets of Portsmouth in the 1930s, especially in a crowded house full of hungry brothers. Determined to have a better life, yearning for the passion and romance she sees on the silver screen, Queenie sets out to secure her own future. And handsome, aloof Able Seaman Jackson could be the answer to her prayers.
But Keith Jackson has his own ambitions and dreams, and they don't include settling down. And the outbreak of war will bring both heartbreak and hardship for Queenie, changing the course of her life for ever.
A more ambitious novel than Captain Corelli, and a better one
—— Financial TimesA mesmerising patchwork of horror, humour and humanity
—— IndependentA magnificent, poetic, colossal novel... Superbly written... It is, in every sense, a sublime book
—— Irish TimesHis most serious and ambitious achievement to date
—— Times Literary SupplementPleasurable... Like Steinbeck, de Bernières deserves praise for his imaginative sympathy
—— Independent on SundayShafak will challenge Paulo Coelho's dominance
—— The IndependentAn honour killing is at the centre of this stunning novel... Exotic, evocative and utterly gripping
—— The TimesLushly and memorably magic-realist... This is an extraordinarily skilfully crafted and ambitious narrative
—— The IndependentThe book calls to mind The Color Purple in the fierceness of its engagement with male violence and its determination to see its characters to a better place. But Shafak is closer to Isabel Allende in spirit, confidence and charm. Her portrayal of Muslim cultures, both traditional and globalising, is as hopeful as it is politically sophisticated. This alone should gain her the world audience she has long deserved
—— The GuardianIn Honour, Shafak treats an important, absorbing subject in a fast-paced, internationally familiar style that will make it accessible to a wide readership
—— Sunday TimesFascinating and gripping - a wonderful novel
—— Rosamund Lupton, author of SisterVivid storytelling... that explores the darkest aspects of faith and love
—— Sunday TelegraphMoving, subtle and ultimately hopeful, Honour is further proof that Shafak is the most exciting Turkish novelist to reach western readers in years
—— Irish Times