Read Online Turkey Street Jack and Liam move to Bodrum Jack Scott 9780993237720 Books
Read Online Turkey Street Jack and Liam move to Bodrum Jack Scott 9780993237720 Books


Six months into their Turkish affair, Jack and Liam, a gay couple from London, took lodgings in the oldest ward of Bodrum Town. If they wanted to shy away from the curtain-twitchers, they couldn’t have chosen a worse position. Their terrace overlooked Turkey Street like the balcony of Buckingham Palace and the middle-aged infidels stuck out like a couple of drunks at a temperance meeting. Against all the odds, the boys from the Smoke were welcomed into the fold by a feisty mix of eccentric locals and a select group of trailblazing expats, irresistible ladies with racy pasts and plucky presents.Hop aboard Jack’s rainbow gulet as he navigates the choppy waters of a town on the march and a national resurgence not seen since Suleiman the Magnificent was at the gates of Vienna. Grab your deckchair for a whirlwind tour of love and duty, passion and betrayal, broken hearts and broken bones, dirty politics and the dawn of a new Ottoman era.
Read Online Turkey Street Jack and Liam move to Bodrum Jack Scott 9780993237720 Books
"Turkey Street, by Jack Scott is at once a charming travel memoir and a smart, sassy commentary on how a small community of expatriates -- including a British gay couple -- get along each day in foreign lands such as Turkey, where the book takes place.
Jack and Liam have gone to the tiny town of Bodrun along the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts on an extended holiday from the dank fogs of London. This is the story of the outrageous people they meet and the oftentimes funny, sometimes poignant, situations in which they find themselves.
Seen primarily through the eyes of Jack, the neighborhood comes alive with warmth and hospitality at their arrival. Their Turkish landlady, Beril, seems to think that by fixing them any one of two dozen Turkish dishes, she can put a bad mood or situation instantly better. Her efforts are met with long-suffering patience by Jack and Liam, whose domestic devotion -- if not always bliss -- shines through the entire narrative.
We meet many characters of note. There's Sophia, a one-time aspiring film star, but now "a resolutely single, well-appointed Turkish widow with dazzling white hair fashioned into a bun and a heart in a million pieces" even years after the death of her diplomat husband.
There's Sean, Liam's severely handicapped younger brother, whose "overfriendly' demeanor makes him many friends. Liam is fiercely protective of him, even after thirty years, and agonizes when he must finally put him in a home when their mother can no longer care for him.
"Liam helped Sean from his wheelchair and the two brothers sat side by side on the small bed, hands held, sensing the overwhelming inevitability of a situation neither of them could change."
We meet Nancy, whose faithless love for a sea captain outweighs her good sense. "Nancy's pneumatic chest heaved and her heart pounded expectantly, like a virgin on her wedding night."
And, we meet Grit, the innkeeper of a one-star establishment called the Otel Latmos. "There was no disguising it. Grit was a bit of a gorilla. Six feet and more in her cross-hikers, she had the lumbering gait of a silverback."
Ultimately, however, this is a tale about Jack and Liam's devotion to each other and how they weather the ups and downs common to any relationship, and his deft treatment of the story -- told with humor and grace -- speaks volumes for how much they care for one another.
Overall, I found the book to be well-written and insightful -- particularly on the subject of Turkey and its status in the world community. I give Turkey Street an unqualified five stars."
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Turkey Street Jack and Liam move to Bodrum Jack Scott 9780993237720 Books Reviews :
Turkey Street Jack and Liam move to Bodrum Jack Scott 9780993237720 Books Reviews
- TURKEY STREET, the sequel to Jack Scott’s PERKING THE PANSIES, is a satisfying hail and farewell to the unlikely Muslim country two gays fell in love with, passionately courted, and reluctantly left behind.
Like the first book, this one is a tasty Turkish delight, a mad dervish of colorful characters, and a love song to an adopted country. The main difference I find in these pages is a more tangible undercurrent of sadness and the inevitability of kismet’s farewell kiss. The bitter-sweet texture is what gives this sequel its uniqueness, much as the first one is rare for its witty narrative and remarkable characters.
Happiness is often defined by its opposite. In TURKEY STREET Scott gives us a symbolic olive tree dedicated to a fallen lover, an orphan lost in a brutal system, and broken family members who pull the heart strings back to England.
Both Jack (the narrator) and Liam (his husband) have the kind of breezy wit that keeps the story moving with grace and style. Author Scott has the rare ability to speak volumes with a few well chosen words and tongue-in-cheek innuendo. Being a student of language, I appreciate the glossaries at the end—street Turkish and even Brit-speak with more than a little Polari thrown into the mix.
If there be a narrative flaw, it would be the occasional lapse of point of view, where we see a brief scene through the eyes and mind of a character other than Jack. Picky, picky. By and large, I feasted on this story…a lavish banquet of language, a delicious taste of understated love. - Thank you to Jack and Liam for taking me on my Turkish adventure. For my review, I offer some North American perspective.
Us US Americans are notoriously badly traveled--I've been fortunate to travel some, but let's be honest the majority of us barely get to Canada or Mexico, let alone the Middle East. To most here, Turkey sounds like a distant kingdom of magic and mystery. Part thrilling, part terrifying! My limited experience in the Middle East was wonderful, so I was excited to read "Turkey Street" and gain insight into life there as an expat and LGBT.
In this the second book of their adventures, the newness and novelty of the gay couple's move has worn off. The Emigreys (old expats) and VOMITs (victims of men in Turkey) are up to their old tricks, and our protagonists grapple with how to continue evolving while Ataturk's homeland faces some complicated challenges as a rising economic power on the edge of Europe with a proud Islamic tradition.
There's lots of wit and unique turns of phrase I found myself highlighting in the reader. ***HOWEVER*** warning this book is very very British! Not like Simon Cowell and JK Rowling British, more like Henry VIII and Katie Price British i.e. unless you have some exposure to British culture and history you'll be making solid use of the handy glossary in the back Jack Scott kindly wrote for North American readers wondering what's "blankety blank" and who's "Vicky Pollard."
In the end, "Turkey Street" is a great read, and I learned about both Turkish AND British culture. Now please excuse me while I apply my slapper red lipstick and groove to the "Best of Zeki Muren" on my iTunes! - As a person who is absolutely in love with Bodrum all I can say this is just another great book! I loved the first 3 books and this one is also wonderful. Love you Liam and Jack. Keep on rocking guys!
- Loved It!
- Turkey Street, by Jack Scott is at once a charming travel memoir and a smart, sassy commentary on how a small community of expatriates -- including a British gay couple -- get along each day in foreign lands such as Turkey, where the book takes place.
Jack and Liam have gone to the tiny town of Bodrun along the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts on an extended holiday from the dank fogs of London. This is the story of the outrageous people they meet and the oftentimes funny, sometimes poignant, situations in which they find themselves.
Seen primarily through the eyes of Jack, the neighborhood comes alive with warmth and hospitality at their arrival. Their Turkish landlady, Beril, seems to think that by fixing them any one of two dozen Turkish dishes, she can put a bad mood or situation instantly better. Her efforts are met with long-suffering patience by Jack and Liam, whose domestic devotion -- if not always bliss -- shines through the entire narrative.
We meet many characters of note. There's Sophia, a one-time aspiring film star, but now "a resolutely single, well-appointed Turkish widow with dazzling white hair fashioned into a bun and a heart in a million pieces" even years after the death of her diplomat husband.
There's Sean, Liam's severely handicapped younger brother, whose "overfriendly' demeanor makes him many friends. Liam is fiercely protective of him, even after thirty years, and agonizes when he must finally put him in a home when their mother can no longer care for him.
"Liam helped Sean from his wheelchair and the two brothers sat side by side on the small bed, hands held, sensing the overwhelming inevitability of a situation neither of them could change."
We meet Nancy, whose faithless love for a sea captain outweighs her good sense. "Nancy's pneumatic chest heaved and her heart pounded expectantly, like a virgin on her wedding night."
And, we meet Grit, the innkeeper of a one-star establishment called the Otel Latmos. "There was no disguising it. Grit was a bit of a gorilla. Six feet and more in her cross-hikers, she had the lumbering gait of a silverback."
Ultimately, however, this is a tale about Jack and Liam's devotion to each other and how they weather the ups and downs common to any relationship, and his deft treatment of the story -- told with humor and grace -- speaks volumes for how much they care for one another.
Overall, I found the book to be well-written and insightful -- particularly on the subject of Turkey and its status in the world community. I give Turkey Street an unqualified five stars.
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