Painting a picture of city life

Maxine Bagdat’s latest book, Between The Two, features striking comparisons between her own life and that of her heroine, Melek.

“My husband and I lived in Sheffield together, like Melek and her husband Nick,” explained the 56-year-old.

“And I attended night school in the city to learn Turkish ahead of moving to Istanbul with my husband, which also features in the book.

“My own father worked in the steel industry, so the main character’s father-in- law does too. I think I write best when I am writing about an environment or geographical place familiar to me and near to my heart. My story seems less like fiction when it has connotations of my home town. I can visualise the areas I allude to and hear the people of Sheffield as I write, which hopefully will engage local readers more.

“Having spent almost five years living in Istanbul, soaking up the culture and visiting various other cities and towns in this vast country, I felt compelled to write a fiction which would reflect all that I had learned, of a life between two places.”

Maxine’s first novel, Julia’s Meadow - which was released on Kindle and Amazon two years ago - is also based in the city and captures the essence of Maxine’s experience growing up on Sheffield’s Manor Estate in the 1970s.

Maxine, a former French teacher, added: “My first book flowed out in five months and I’ve loved writing this second story too.

“I always enjoy reading books set in places I’ve been and I hope the people of Sheffield will enjoy my story.”

Visit Maxine on Amazon for more details.