BookBrowse Reviews The Anthropologists by Aysegül Savas

A documentary filmmaker, Asya is interested in the "unremarkable grace" of daily life, "the slow and leisurely rot of a day." In a nameless city where she and most of her close friends are foreigners, Asya, her long-time partner Manu, and their best friend Ravi spend most of their time hanging out in the local park or each other's homes, visiting markets, or drinking in bars. The three are held together by an artistic and searching temperament, a desire to find ways of living that are beautiful, free, and pleasurable. There's something very comforting about inhabiting Asya's mind, like taking a deep breath. Operating at a slight remove, she peers into life as one might a rock pool, quietly examining the movements of tiny creatures in their natural habitats. As the three friends glide around the city, Savas's prose glides too, sanguine, thoughtful, and elegant.

The driving ...