Shortlisted for the 2019 Booker Prize, 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World is a life-affirming novel that gives voice to the invisible
In the moments after she has been murdered and left in a dumpster outside Istanbul, Tequila Leila enters a state of heightened awareness. Her heart has stopped beating, but her brain is still active. While the Turkish sun rises and her friends sleep soundly nearby, she remembers her life – and the lives of others: outcasts just like her.
Elif Shafak is an award-winning British-Turkish novelist and a passionate advocate for women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and freedom of expression. She has published 19 books, including 12 novels, and her works have been translated into 57 languages. 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and RSL Ondaatje Prize; and chosen as Blackwell’s Book of the Year.
10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World is one of the current featured titles in the National Literacy Trust’s Books Unlocked programme, which is supported by the Booker Prize Foundation.
From a reading guide and extract to an exclusive interview with the author, find out more about our July Monthly Spotlight here.
