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This was my book club read for May, it's a beautifully written book that has so much to say about family, grief, and connection.

It is set in multiple time periods, but mostly alternating between the 1970s in Cyprus where two young people fall in love: Kostas is Greek and Defne is Turkish, and this is just not acceptable as the two sides are in the midst of a civil war and have different religious beliefs. As well as the late 2010s, where Kostas and his teen daughter Ada are living in London and each dealing with Defne's death in their own way. Overarching it all is the point of view of the fig tree, which first observes the couple in Cyprus and then a cutting of her travels to England and is narrating in the present day.

I appreciated the emotional depth of the story, the evolution of the relationship between Kostas and Defne and then Kostas and Ada. I learned a great deal about the history of Cyprus, and how devastating the wars were on the people involved. The grief of generations flows through each one. I wanted a little bit more from the present day storyline, I felt like some of the story was left a bit unfinished. Yet overall this is a resonant book and I'm very glad I got a chance to read it.