Voting Station

Elif Safak

Please vote to return to collections.

Author

The Resume

    (October 25, 1971- )
    Born in Strasbourg, France
    Pen name of Elif Bilgin
    Second part of her pen name pronounced as 'Shah-FAHK'
    Novels include 'The Hidden' (1997), 'The Gaze' (1999), 'The Flea Palace' (2002), 'The Saint of Incipient Insanities' (2004), 'The Bastard of Istanbul' (2006), 'The Forty Rules of Love: A Novel of Rumi' (2009), 'Honor' (2011), 'The Architect's Apprentice' (2013), and 'Three Daughters of Eve' (2016)
    Wrote the autobiography 'Black Milk: On Motherhood and Writing' (2007)
    Wrote for various newspapers and periodicals, and her essays were compiled in the books 'Med-Cezir' (2005), 'Firarperest' (2010), 'Şemspare' (2012)
    Taught at various universities in Turkey, UK, and US
    Awards received include Rumi Prize (1998), Turkish Writers' Union Prize for Best Novel (2000), Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters (2010), and Global Empowerment Award from Asian Women of Achievement Awards (2015)

Why she might be annoying:

    She was prosecuted on charges of 'insulting Turkishness' for addressing the Armenian Genocide in 'The Bastard of Istanbul'.
    She suffered from post-natal depression following the birth of her daughter. (2006)
    As a child, she once learned how to sing, only to have no talent in music.
    The second part of her pen name sounds like 'she fucked'.

Why she might not be annoying:

    When she was a year old, her parents separated, leaving her under the care of her single mother.
    She advocates free speech, women's rights, LGBT rights, and minority rights.
    She criticizes all kinds of rigid ideologies, including the ultranationalism espoused by Turkey's political elite.
    When prosecuted for 'insulting Turkishness', she had to live with a bodyguard.
    Her writing style incorporates Western and Eastern influences on storytelling and reflects the diversity of cultures she has encountered.

Credit: Big Lenny


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 12 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 14 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 34 Votes: 50.0% Annoying