Set in Dushanbe, Tajikstan’s capital city, My Neighbourhood Sisters provides a snapshot of a close-knit community as it endeavours to adjust to changes induced by the country’s senseless civil war in the 1990s.    Turning the pages of Gulsifat Shakhidi’s novel is like looking through a photo album, in which the narrator, Zulfiya has lovingly pasted images of both her own family and those of her neighbours. And behind each picture lies a poignant story.  Shakhidi’s key protagonists are her close female friends; a group of proud, hardworking Tajik women who are challenged by both political and domestic unrest as they wrestle to maintain traditional family values. Their customs and local environment – the communal courtyard where neighbours gather to drink tea on a raised bed- may belong to Central Asia, but the hardships they endure are universal: infidelity, addiction, abuse, poverty, death. And it is this, so sensitively described by Shakhidi that will resonate with readers the world over.  Zulfiya’s ‘sisters’ include feisty professionals and housewives, grandmothers and new brides, and as the novel unfolds, we learn how they value being able to share their problems and support each other in times of trouble. They also rely heavily on the wisdom and experience of Zulfiya’s adopted uncle and fellow tenant, war veteran, Grigory Semenovich.  My Neighbourhood Sisters is a powerful and beautiful book filled with characters drawn from both the author’s imagination and her actual family, but in all of them, we will recognise aspects of ourselves and people from our own lives, and will perhaps be drawn to reflect on that close camaraderie between neighbours and that sense of community which in our current age, are fast disappearing.  

MY NEIGHBOURHOOD SISTERS: THE CITY WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE

Literature & Fiction

SHAKHIDI, GULSIFAT

Short Stories & Anthologies

HERTFORDSHIRE PRESS

Everyone loves fairy tales, both adults and children, and in this book each person will find something both attractive and instructive. In this volume, the heroes of these fairy tales: a wounded dove which refuses to surrender, a tricky monkey called Cutie, an old-time doll named Alyonushka, a naive lamb, a young wolf which does not want to grow bloodthirsty, and other animals will tell their stories to you, my friends and readers.

Tales of Grandma Gulsifat

Mythology & Folk Tales

In the wake of the civil war which devastated Tajikistan, Gulsifat Shakhidi's Farkhod from Navghilem tells the story of Farkhod and his friends, who navigate the new world they find themselves in with wit and a happy-go-lucky approach as they laugh through the tears. Written with an easy charm and deeply felt empathy for these characters which jump from the page, the novella is fast-paced, humorous, and a joy to read. &#1053;&#1086;&#1074;&#1072;&#1103; &#1082;&#1085;&#1080;&#1075;&#1072; &#1043;&#1091;&#1083;&#1100;&#1089;&#1080;&#1092;&#1072;&#1090; &#1064;&#1072;&#1093;&#1080;&#1076;&#1080; &#1060;&#1072;&#1088;&#1093;&#1086;&#1076; &#1080;&#1079; &#1053;&#1072;&#1074;&#1075;&#1080;&#1083;&#1077;&#1084;&#1072; - &#1101;&#1090;&#1086; &#1102;&#1084;&#1086;&#1088;&#1080;&#1089;&#1090;&#1080;&#1095;&#1077;&#1089;&#1082;&#1072;&#1103; &#1087;&#1086;&#1074;&#1077;&#1089;&#1090;&#1100;, &#1074; &#1082;&#1086;&#1090;&#1086;&#1088;&#1086;&#1081; &#1075;&#1077;&#1088;&#1086;&#1080; &#1085;&#1077; &#1086;&#1095;&#1077;&#1088;&#1089;&#1090;&#1074;&#1077;&#1083;&#1080; &#1089;&#1077;&#1088;&#1076;&#1094;&#1077;&#1084; &#1074; &#1085;&#1072;&#1096;&#1077; &#1085;&#1077;&#1087;&#1088;&#1086;&#1089;&#1090;&#1086;&#1077; &#1074;&#1088;&#1077;&#1084;&#1103;. &#1070;&#1084;&#1086;&#1088; &#1087;&#1086;&#1084;&#1086;&#1075;&#1072;&#1077;&#1090; &#1080;&#1084; &#1089;&#1082;&#1088;&#1072;i&#1080;&#1074;&#1072;&#1090;&#1100; &#1078;&#1080;&#1079;&#1085;&#1100; &#1080; &#1082;&#1086;&#1088;&#1088;&#1077;&#1082;&#1090;&#1080;&#1088;&#1086;&#1074;&#1072;&#1090;&#1100; &#1086;&#1090;&#1085;&#1086;&#1096;&#1077;&#1085;&#1080;&#1077; &#1089; &#1086;&#1082;&#1088;&#1091;&#1078;&#1072;&#1102;&#1097;&#1080;&#1084;&#1080;.

Farkhod from Navghilem

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Books by SHAKHIDI, GULSIFAT

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by SHAKHIDI, GULSIFAT. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

MY NEIGHBOURHOOD SISTERS: THE CITY WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE

Tales of Grandma Gulsifat

Farkhod from Navghilem