Organised by The Guardian
Elif Shafak is an award-winning Turkish-British novelist, whose work often explores themes of love, identity and cultural division. She will be talking about her new novel, There Are Rivers in the Sky.
Elif Shafak’s new novel, There Are Rivers in the Sky is a rich, sweeping tale spanning centuries, continents and cultures. It is the story of one lost poem, two great rivers, and three remarkable lives – all connected by a single drop of water. Among its characters are an extraordinary child born at the edge of the dirt-black Thames in Victorian London, a Yazidi girl journeying across war-torn lands in 2014 Turkey, and a broken-hearted hydrologist in 2018 London.
Elif’s 19 books include The Forty Rules of Love and The Island of Missing Trees. She also writes about international politics, far-right populism, pluralism and democracy. She is an outspoken critic of the Turkish government, and a passionate champion of women’s rights and free speech. In 2019, her novels became a target for ‘crimes of obscenity’ by Turkish prosecutors; she has since been living in self-imposed exile in London.
Join her for a wide-ranging conversation about her craft, her inspirations and her latest novel, in this livestreamed and interactive event. You will also have the chance to ask your own questions.