10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World

Nostalgia Nalan is one of Leila’s five friends in Istanbul. Nostalgia Nalan is a transgender woman born to a small farming family in Anatolia. After her family tried to find her a wife against her wishes, Nostalgia Nalan left her home and moved to Istanbul. There, she received several gender-affirming surgeries and began to work in the sex industry. She and Leila were very close friends, and upon Leila’s death, Nostalgia Nalan vowed to give her a proper funeral. Nostalgia Nalan created the plan to exhume Leila’s remains from the Cemetery of the Companionless and convinced Leila’s other friends to help her.

Nostalgia Nalan is a very strong-willed but loving woman. Nostalgia Nalan was given her nickname because she would often talk about missing the countryside in Anatolia. She is passionate and fiercely protective of her friends; she is described by Leila as being ferociously loyal to her friends and loved ones. She is a very righteous character who, through her encounters with transphobia and discrimination against sex workers, has become combative toward people exhibiting those behaviors. As a character, she pushes things forward in the plot often by taking control of situations or coming up with plans and ideas. She is the de facto leader of Leila’s friend group and is responsible for Leila’s reburial at sea.

Sabotage Sinan is Leila’s oldest friend, following her from their hometown in Van. Sabotage Sinan was the son of the town’s only female pharmacist; she was described as being a Westernized woman who did not fit into the traditional norms of that society. Sabotage Sinan helped Leila leave Van after the death of her brother by stealing the money for her train ticket. In Istanbul, Sabotage Sinan entered a loveless marriage and had children. He was relatively successful as an employee for a large corporation. After Leila’s death, Sabotage Sinan regrets never telling Leila that he loved her.

Sabotage Sinan received his nickname from his friends for the fact that he sabotages his own life. The nickname acts as a form of foreshadowing for his eventual decision to help throw Leila’s body off the bridge at the expense of losing his wife, job, and reputation. Sabotage Sinan is a very quiet character who is portrayed as being a bystander for much of his life. Sabotage Sinan completes his character arc by deciding to help Nostalgia Nalan with her plan, proving that he will take an active role within his own life.

Zaynab122 was born in an isolated mountain village in Lebanon. Because her village practiced endogamy, the practice of marrying only within a small community of people, Zaynab122 has a condition called dwarfism. Zaynab122 decided to leave her small village in Lebanon and move to Istanbul after a significant struggle with her health. Due to her accessibility needs, Zaynab122 had difficulty finding work in Istanbul, but she found work with Bitter Ma in her brothel as a housekeeper. Zaynab122 was deeply religious and found comfort in fortune telling and superstition. She met Leila at Bitter Ma’s brothel and was one of the only people Leila felt comfortable speaking with.

Zaynab122 received her nickname from her claims that she could spell her name in 122 different ways. Throughout the novel, Zaynab acts as a pillar of reason within the group; she often questions the others’ decisions and forces them to think things through. Zaynab122 and Nostalgia Nalan often argue over the role of religion within society; this comes to a head when Zaynab122 and Nostalgia Nalan argue over the treatment of Leila’s body. Zaynab122 is deeply loving and cares for each of her friends immensely. At the end of the novel, she acts against her religious beliefs to help lay Leila to rest in a way that she deems proper. This decision makes it clear just how far Zaynab122 is willing to go for her friends and loved ones.

Hollywood Humeyra was born in Mardin, Turkey, and lived among a linguistically diverse community. When she was 16, her father arranged for her to be married against her wishes. For several years, she was verbally and physically abused by her husband and in-laws before deciding to leave the Mardin to go to Istanbul. In Istanbul, Hollywood Humeyra got a job at a nightclub as a singer; she met Leila after work one evening when they found a dying cat on the side of the road and decided to save it. Hollywood Humeyra has severe psychiatric disabilities, and she often self-medicated. Leila supported her through her journey, and without Leila, Hollywood Humeyra wondered what would have happened to her.

Hollywood Humeyra got her nickname from Leila because she could sing beautiful ballads, and her life seemed like those she sang about. Hollywood Humeyra struggled with her fear surrounding the possibility of becoming a victim of an honor killing. As Humeyra chose to leave her husband behind and embarrass the family, she was afraid that her husband would find her and hurt her. She also worried that if he were to find her, she would harm herself to get away from him. Hollywood Humeyra is strong and loyal; she is the first person to support Nostalgia Nalan’s plan to exhume Leila’s body.