Elif Shafak | |
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 Shafak in 2021 | |
| Native name | Elif Şafak |
| Born | Elif Bilgin 25 October 1971 Strasbourg, France |
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| Education | Middle East Technical University |
| Period | 1990s–present |
| Genre | Literary fiction |
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| Website | |
| www | |
Elif Shafak FRSL (Turkish: Elif Şafak, pronounced [eˈlif ʃaˈfak]; née Bilgin; born 25 October 1971) is a Turkish-British[1] novelist, essayist, public speaker, political scientist[2] and activist.
Shafak[a] writes in Turkish and English, and has published 21 books. She is best known for her novels, which include The Bastard of Istanbul, The Forty Rules of Love, Three Daughters of Eve and 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World. Her works have been translated into 57 languages and have been nominated for several literary awards. She has been described by the Financial Times as "Turkey's leading female novelist",[3] with several of her works having been bestsellers in Turkey and internationally.
Her works have prominently featured the city of Istanbul, and dealt with themes of Eastern and Western culture, roles of women in society, and human rights issues. Certain politically challenging topics addressed in her novels, such as child abuse and the Armenian genocide, have led to legal action from authorities in Turkey[4][5] that prompted her to emigrate to the United Kingdom.
Shafak has a PhD in political science. An essayist and contributor to several media outlets, Shafak has advocated for women's rights, minority rights, and freedom of speech.[6][7]
- ^ "Elif Shafak". Curtis Brown. Archived from the original on 25 April 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ Beard, Mary (21 August 2020). "How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division by Elif Shafak review – a poignant look back at another age". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
- ^ "Small talk: Elif Shafak". Financial Times. 18 February 2011. Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
- ^ Freely, Maureen (13 August 2006). "Writers on Trial". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 15 January 2018. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:2was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Shafak, Elif (15 July 2019). "'Police officers demanded to see my books': Elif Shafak on Turkey's war on free-speech". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 20 November 2021. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
- ^ "Elif Shafak on our common humanity". Free Speech Debate. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 12 May 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).