The Fisherman and His Son (A Novel) - Brendan Freely, Zulfu Livaneli

Fisherman Mustafa and his wife, Mesude, are devastated with grief for their son Deniz, who was lost at sea at seven years old. One day, Mustafa discovers the bodies of a woman and man in the water, likely refugees from Syria, Pakistan, or Afghanistan drowned as they attempted to reach Greece. Nearby, he also finds a baby boy, tied to a small inflatable boat and miraculously alive. Mustafa and Mesude at first welcome the child as a precious gift, a second Deniz, but when a woman surfaces claiming to be his mother, they must make a painful decision. Through their heart-wrenching story, Zulfu Livaneli sensitively evokes the struggles of migrants seeking a safer life in unknown, often hostile lands. In the process, he also teaches readers about the history and culture of the Aegean, and the ecological destruction wreaked by corporations in the region.