Days of Moonlight

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Finalist for the 2019 Fred Kerner Book Award; Finalist for the 2019 International Book Awards for Literary Fiction

Upon receiving a letter and a package of journals from a dying Mehtap, her mother Nuray’s close friend in Turkey, a young Toronto woman immerses herself in the old woman’s memories. She uncovers Mehtap’s story as a factory worker in the 1960s who is infatuated with her boss, a man she willingly lies for, and even wrap presents for that he gives to his mistress and his wife. When her friend, Nuray, moves in with her, something unexpected happens and Mehtap is forced to choose between her two loves. Mehtap’s story is interwoven with that of her parents, Cretan refugees who landed in Izmir in the mid-twenties as a result of the disastrous population exchange, only to discover an inescapable and tragic truth that shatters their lives. As Mehtap’s writings unfurl, Nuray’s daughter — Mehtap’s namesake — now the keeper of the journals, notebooks and letters written by her mother’s friend, also uncovers her own mother’s deeply-held secrets, furtive yearnings, and forbidden love.

AUTHOR

Loren Edizel

Loren Edizel was born in Izmir, Turkey. Her other works include the novel The Ghosts of Smyrna (Mawenzi, 2013) and several stories, including “The Conch,” which appeared in Turkish translation in the anthology Izmir in Women’s Stories (Kadın Öykülerinde Izmir). She lives in Toronto.

Reviews

“A commendable well-written contribution to Canadian literature, by others for all others! More than moonlight!
—Montreal Serai

“This is a little gem of a book, full of all the tales that make us and unmake us – real and imagined ones, past and present ones. I am infatuated with the voice of our protagonist Mehtap, at times poignant, at times funny – it is totally unique and at the same time, all of us. It is a story about love, the choices we make and the choices that life makes for us.”
–Cecilia Ekb?ck, author of Wolf Winter and In the Month of the Midnight Sun

“Reading this novel was like sliding into a warm bath. It’s a luminous work, a love story that spans several decades. There is also much wisdom and insight to be found along the way. Reader, you are in for a treat.”
–Morris Berman, author of The Reenchantment of the World

“From the first page, via two simple bracelets, Loren Edizel’s Days of Moonlight brings the reader to heartbreakingly real crossroads where desire, family secrets and the legacy of Greco-Turkish conflict all meet–and yet, thanks to the author’s concise images and considered style, the novel also succeeds in reading with the dreamy timelessness we love in the greatest myths and fables. It’s wonderful.”
–Daniel Perry, author of Nobody Looks That Young Here

“Loren Edizel’s fiction speaks through the passage of time itself–the poignancy of what history erases and what only the written word can save. Lovingly written, Days of Moonlight reveals the passionate love and friendship of two women who embody the history and culture of a passing age, and the tender bonds of family and place.”
–Carole Giangrande, author of All That Is Solid Melts Into Air

“A beautiful, moving portrayal of the complexities and richness of life, and love gained, lost and re-found–a poetic novel full of visceral imagery. You can hear the clinking of the tea glasses, taste the salt of the Aegean Sea, and see the red-tiled roofs of Izmir. You will be transported to Crete, Turkey and Canada where past and present comingle in the sensual and often bittersweet power of memory, and become immersed in the stories of strong women, and the women and men they love.”
–Melinda Vandenbeld Giles, author of Clara Awake