The Island of Missing Trees

The Island of Missing Trees is a novel penned by British-Turkish writer Elif Shafak, whose writing, although fictional, features books set in specific socio-historical or cultural contexts. This particular novel is set against the backdrop of the conflict between the Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus, referred to as the “Cyprus problem,” It originated in 1878 with the ceding of Cyprus to the British by the Ottoman Empire in exchange for protection against the Russians. This led to the annexing of the island by the British in 1918, with it eventually becoming a colony. In the 1950s, however, Greek Cypriots began agitating in the name of enosis, i.e., the unification of Cyprus with Greece. In 1960, a temporary peace was obtained when Greek and Turkish Cypriots came together to agree on a constitution, signaling Cyprus’s independence as a nation. However, the agreement saw Britain, along with Turkey and Greece, continue to hold intervention rights over the island (Cyprus Profile).

A few years into the young nation’s life, conflicts began to arise from multiple sources once again. The Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston (EOKA) and the Türk Mukavemet Teşkilatı (TMT) came into being, Greek and Turkish nationalist groups respectively.