BIRDS WITHOUT WINGS

Louis de Bernières, Vintage, US$9.82

With the tale of a small village, Louis de Bernières tells the story of a nation. Birds Without Wings, his fifth novel, is set in the idyllic town of Eskibahce in southwest Anatolia, Turkey. The town is a mix of both Christian and Muslims, a community that has lived harmoniously for centuries.

De Bernières’ narrative style wings us from one viewpoint to another – from Muslim to Christian, rich to poor and child to adult, and all of them have their faults and virtues. The reader never really finds a central protagonist to identify with.

One of the characters is Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the republic of Turkey and its first president. If you’ve ever been to the country, you’ll have seen his picture numerous times – on the street, in hotel lobbies and in people’s homes. Another is the local landlord Rustem Bey, who shocks the townspeople by living with a Circassian whore. We also follow the love story of Philothei, a Christian and the most beautiful girl in Eskibahce, and a Muslim boy Ibrahim the Goatherd.

While of different religious beliefs, the residents of Eskibahce consider themselves united under the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, but as the empire slowly crumbles, against the wider backdrop of the First World War, and religious fundamentalism takes hold, Eskibahce also begins to fall into a slow irreparable decline.

The young men of Eskibahce are sent to war, while the elderly, women and children are left to struggle on – with little food and no money. A final blow is the forced deportation of all Greeks (Christians) living within Turkey, while Greece exiles all Turks (Muslims) living within Greece, despite the cultural ties. It’s  a little known piece of history, brought vividly to life as Eskibahce is split in two.

Meanwhile, Ataturk, out of the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, seeks to found a modern, democratic, secular nation-state. A believer in women’s rights and an admirer of the enlightenment, the principles of Ataturk ’s reforms continue to form the foundations of the modern republic of Turkey.

Birds Without Wings is an insightful introduction to the history, and future, of modern Turkey, the slow decline of the Ottoman Empire and the rise of the nation as a meeting point between east and west. It is also a powerful story of a small community, its hopes and fears and its eventual dispersion as a result of outside influences. A colourful, captivating novel.

Sara Turner