I fell so deeply for There Are Rivers in the Sky that I immediately went searching for the other books by Elif Shafak. A browse to my local library’s website later, I had several of her titles on hold. The first one that became available to continue my reading journey with her writing was The Forty Rules of Love.

This novel goes through several characters whose lives stretch across centuries. One follows Rumi and Shams of Tabriz in the thirteenth century; another centers on Ella, a Massachusetts housewife tentatively stepping into a new role as an editor; and a third introduces Aziz Z. Zahara, the wandering author whose manuscript Ella is reading. Shafak tells these parallel lives together through her signature style of writing from multiple perspectives, giving each character a distinct voice, strong traits, and a worldview that feels whole and fully realized on its own.

Religion and faith play an important role throughout the book. The Qur’an is frequently referenced, often through lyrical lines shaped by Islamic knowledge and tradition. Whether you come to the story with familiarity or none at all, Shafak creates a deep sense of respect for Sufism and its place alongside more traditional interpretations of Islam. The novel explores contrasts such as discipline and spontaneity, reason and love, wisdom and youth, stability and risk. These ideas are not presented as battles to be won, but as tensions that ask for balance, often reflected through relationships between people who seem entirely different from one another.

Reflecting the title, this book reflects on love in its many forms. Love for God, love between friends, love that disrupts, and love that transforms. Reading it strengthened my belief that people from different religions and cultures often seek the same meaning when they speak about love, even if the language differs. By the final pages, the story offers a view of devotion, purpose, and the search for meaning, even if some of its deeper layers remain open for reflection.

The forty rules themselves capture the many shapes love takes through the lives and perspectives of the characters.

My Favorite Bits

• I did the dirty work of others. Even God recognized the need for someone like me in His holy scheme when He appointed Azarael the Archangel of Death to terminate lives. In this way human beings feared cursed, and hated the angel while His hands remained clean and His name unblemished. It wasn’t fair to the angel. But then again, this world was not known for its justice, was it?

• When you spoke the truth, they hated you. The more you talked about love, the more they hated you.

• In this state I roam east and west, searching for God high and low. I hunt everywhere for a life worth living and a knowledge worth knowing. Having roots nowhere, I have everywhere to go.

• “Perhaps I was misunderstood. I didn’t mean to say one could not find GOd if he stayed in his hometown. That is certainly possible,” conceded the dervish. “There are people who have never traveled anywhere and yet have seen the world.”

• “.. the one could not find God if he stayed in the fur coat, silk garment, and pricey jewelry that you are wearing today.”

• “When something needs to be said, I’ll say it even if the whole world grabs me by the nech and tells me to keep quiet.”

• “God does not take us at our word. He looks deep into out hearts. It is not the ceremonies or rituals that make a difference, but whether our hearts are sufficiently pure or not.”

• “There are more fake gurus and false teachers in this world than the number of stars in the visible universe. Don’t confuse power-driven, self-centered people with true mentors. A genuine spiritual master will not direct your attention to himself or herself and will not expect you to appreciate and admire your inner self. True mentors are as transparent as glass. They let the Light of God pass through them.”

• “Every true love and friendship is a story of unexpected transformation. If we are the same person before and after we loved, that means we haven’t loved enough.”

---

Author: Elif Shafak
Publication date: 1 January 2009
Number of pages: 358 pages

---