The Girl in the Tree by Sebnem Isiguzel: book review

The Girl in the Tree (2020) is set in Istanbul, Turkey, from 2011 to 2015.

The narrator, a 17-year-old girl, climbs an old plane tree in GülhanePark to escape the violent protests and turmoil—after a suicide bombing. She hadn’t planned to; it just happened—she wanted to live, and not die on the streets. Now that she is in the tree, in a stork’s nest, alone and afraid, she plans to stay there until she dies.

A young boy, Yunus, who works at the nearby hotel, spots her. He asks her lots of questions, and wants her to come down, but she finds him annoying. He brings food, bandages, and books—and a fur coat. He tells her about his family. They begin to share views on democracy and try to make sense of their changing world.

From her tree-top home, her past haunts her, but she defiantly navigates social tension, loss, and love, while trying to survive in her chaotic new city.

There are peaks and troughs in this story, so it’s difficult to maintain high interest levels. However, it’s a quick, easy read, about a country’s politics and the effects of its turmoil on youth, from the perspective of two teenagers.

MARTINA NICOLLS

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MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: The Paris Residences of James Joyce (2020), Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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