Description

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022
THE TOP TEN SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER & REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK

*****

You don’t fall in love in Cyprus in the summer of 1974. Not here, not now.

In 1974, two teenagers, from opposite sides of a divided Cyprus, meet at a tavern in the city they both call home. The tavern is the only place that Kostas, who is Greek, and Defne who is Turkish, can meet in secret, hidden beneath the leaves of a fig tree growing through the roof of the tavern. This tree will witness their hushed happy meetings, and will be there when the war breaks out and the teenagers vanish.

Decades later in north London, sixteen-year-old Ada has never visited the island where her parents were born. She seeks to untangle years of her family’s silence, but the only connection she has to the land of her ancestors Is a fig tree growing tin the garden of their home . . .

*****

‘This book moved me to tears . . . in the best way. Powerful and poignant’ Reese Witherspoon

‘A brilliant novel — one that rings with Shafak’s characteristic compassion’ Robert Macfarlane

‘This is an enchanting, compassionate and wise novel and storytelling at its most sublime’ Polly Samson

*** ELIF SHAFAK’S NEW NOVEL, THERE ARE RIVERS IN THE SKY, IS AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW ***

Publisher Review

The Island of Missing Trees is a magical masterpiece . . . Elif Shafak has done it again with this brilliant novel of the secrets of hearts, the history of Cyprus and the beauty of memory. Truly full of miracles. -- Kate Williams The Island of Missing Trees, for all its uses of enchantment, is a complex and powerful work in which the harrowing material settles on the reader delicately * FT * Poignant . . . [Shafak] knows exactly when to dangle unanswered questions, when to drench our senses, when to offer meaningful musings, elegant metaphors and tugs at the heartstrings * Sunday Times * Compassionate and enchanting, it's a transporting tale of roots, renewal and talking trees * Mail on Sunday, Best New Fiction * Enchanting . . . Shafak's writing is poised and expressive, remarkable for its charm and lyricism . . . The novel is a tapestry of heavy emotions, but it's one that's spun with brightness * Sunday Telegraph, Novel of the Week * The Cyprus setting is stunningly described in this spellbinding story about identity, love and loss * Good Housekeeping, 'this month's 10 books to read right now' (September) * The Island of Missing Trees is a strong and enthralling work: its world of superstition, natural beauty and harsh tribal loyalties becomes your world . . . for all its uses of enchantment, it is a complex and powerful work in which the harrowing material settles on the reader delicately * FT * A wonderful rebuke to anthropocentric storytelling . . . Elif's extraordinary new novel about grief, love and memory * Literary Review * The Cyprus setting is stunningly described in this spellbinding story about identity, love and loss * Good Houskeeping, best books to read this month * This is a sweeping, romantic tale about love and loss that's so evocative you can smell honeysuckle and figs wafting from the pages * Red, best books to read this autumn * The wounds inflicted and the search for healing across three generations is explored in the tales of its unforgettable characters . . . beyond the narrative, the author's longing to dissolve barriers between people and the natural world is evident. A beautiful read * Woman & Home, September Book Club Pick * If Ms Shafak's subjects are sombre, her magical-realist style is anything but . . . Shafak does not shrink from the reality of violence, but she salvages tenderness - even joy - form the wreckage of 20th century history * Economist * The Island of Missing Trees asks us important questions about losing home, about coping and secrets . . . this is a beautiful novel . . . made ferocious by its uncompromising empathy * Guardian, Book of the Day * Booker-shortlisted Shafak (10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World) amazes with this resonant story of the generational trauma of the Cypriot Civil War * Publishers Weekly * A magical story about nature, humanity and love . . . a beautiful contemplation of some of life's biggest questions about identity, history and meaning * Time, Anticipated Book for Fall 2021 * One of the best writers in the world today * Hanif Kureishi * A wise novel of love and grief, roots and branches, displacement and home, faith and belief. The Island of Missing Trees is balm for our bruised times -- David Mitchell, author of Utopia Avenue