The Gaze - Elif Shafak

Category: Adults, General Fiction, Historical Fiction, Novel
Language: English
Keywords: Contemporary Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Turkish Literature Womens

Written by Elif Shafak
Read by Alix Dunmore
Format: MP3
Bitrate: Variable
Unabridged

In her prize-wining novel, The Gaze, Shafak explores the subject of body image and desirability. An overweight woman and her lover, a dwarf, are sick of being stared at wherever they go, and decide to reverse roles. The man goes out wearing make up, and the woman draws a moustache on her face.

The couple deal with the gaze of passers by in different ways. The woman wants to hide away from the world, while the man meets them head on, even compiling his own ‘Dictionary of the Gaze’ to show the powerful effects a simple look can have.