Almost a Turkish Soap Opera

Having watched many Portuguese and Spanish soap operas before I was very intrigued to read this book. There is a strong sense of culture, religion and tradition that is a vital backdrop to the story. Adel is an extraordinary character who wants to fulfill his dreams and is thwarted time and time again. The reader feels his disappointment and hopes he reaches them in the end. A numerous amount of surprises particularly at the end and with a bit of wit made this a very enjoyable read. I bet if you are not a fan of soap operas you will be after reading this.

Having watched many Portuguese and Spanish soap operas before I was very intrigued to read this book. There is a strong sense of culture, religion and tradition that is a vital backdrop to the story. Adel is an extraordinary character who wants to fulfill his dreams and is thwarted time and time again. The reader feels his disappointment and hopes he reaches them in the end. A numerous amount of surprises particularly at the end and with a bit of wit made this a very enjoyable read. I bet if you are not a fan of soap operas you will be after reading this.

Anne-Rae Vasquez’s Almost A Turkish Soap Opera is about two friends, Kamil and Adel, who immigrate to the US from Turkey in order to make money and live their lives to the fullest. They move to LA and get an apartment together and begin working as taxi shuttle drivers for family. Adel, a ladies’ man who seems to have an easier time getting used to the US than Kamil does. Adel is more outgoing, getting him better tips and allowing him to buy his own taxi van in order to start his own business, until his jealous cousin reports him to the Immigration Service and has him deported back to Turkey. Soon after he goes back to Turkey, he leaves for Canada, where Kamil has been arranged to marry a Turkish woman. After a short stay at show more Kamil’s apartment, Adel soon realizes that this is not the life that he wants to live. After his own arranged marriage to Yonka, his cousin, falls apart, he realizes that he wants to start a life with Nora, his instructor at the university and a woman he fell in love with in LA. Yonka complicates things and he is soon married to another woman and Nora ends up with Kamil after his marriage is also annulled.

This is an easy read with a lot of adventures that Adel and Kamil experience together and Adel experiences alone, including his deportation from the US back to Turkey. He has to balance his love for his family and his love for a life that truly fulfills him and makes him happy. While it takes a while to get there, both men soon find all of the love and happiness that they have been seeking, both from their wives and from their families back in Turkey.

This is a very entertaining book and I laughed at least one in each chapter at the adventures that Adel and Kamil experience. While Adel thinks he has bad luck, Kamil thinks he finds himself in these situations due to his irresponsible and womanizing ways. Kamil is the tamer of the two and his is more interested in honoring his family and living a good life in the eyes of others. When Adel is arranged to marry Yonka, he knows his is in for the ride of his life, but he does not know how bumpy the ride will be until it affects his relationship with Nora. Nora was meant to be with Kamil, and the complications between Yonka and Adel help both of them realize that they were not meant to be together. This book was very much like a soap opera, but was also like a romantic comedy in many ways. I enjoyed reading the book and turning the pages to see what was going to unfold in the next chapter. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys soap operas or romantic comedies, and those who just enjoy an easy ready that is entertaining and will keep you guessing. show less

This was another review that took a long time for me to get to, not because the book was a difficult read, but because the over saturation of cliches in the story. The read does get almost a permanent eye roll when reading the story. Kamil and Adel are well developed characters, but exactly what they are; characters. There is nothing real, or connectable (?) to them.