Sevgi Soysal: Şafak (Dawn)
The latest addition to my website is Sevgi Soysal's Şafak (Dawn). The story, partially based on the author's own life is set in Adana, where Oya is in internal exile…
Orhan Pamuk: Veba Geceleri (Nights of Plague)
The latest addition to my website is Orhan Pamuk's Veba Geceleri (Nights of Plague). This tells the long and complex story of the fictitious Mediterranean island of Mingheria. The story…
Zülfü Livaneli: Huzursuzluk (Disquiet)
The latest addition to my website is Zülfü Livaneli's Huzursuzluk (Disquiet). A Turkish, Istanbul-based journalist, Ibrahim, learns that Hussein, whom he knew as a child when they were growing up…
Selim Özdoğan: Die Tochter des Schmieds (The Blacksmith’s Daughter)
The latest addition to my website is Selim Özdoğan:'s Die Tochter des Schmieds (The Blacksmith’s Daughter). This is the first in a trilogy which focuses on Gül, a Turkish woman,…
Leylâ Erbil: Tuhaf Bir Kadın (A Strange Woman)
The latest addition to my website is Leylâ Erbil's Tuhaf Bir Kadın (A Strange Woman). This is a feminist novel about Nermin, who is nineteen in 1950 and struggles both…
Sema Kaygusuz: Yüzünde Bir Yer (Every Fire You Tend)
The latest addition to my website is the Sema Kaygusuz's Yüzünde Bir Yer (Every Fire You Tend). This is an intense feminist Turkish novel, whose starting point is Dersim rebellion…
Turkish literature Part 2
I have now read twenty Turkish novels in a row, by twenty different authors. Given that I read relatively few beforehand, it has been a most interesting experience. While obviously…
Burhan Sönmez: Masumlar (Sins & Innocents)
The latest addition to my website is Burhan Sönmez's Masumlar (Sins & Innocents. Burhan Sönmez was attacked by the police in Turkey and came to England, specifically Cambridge, both to…
Nâzım Hikmet: Yaşamak Güzel Şey Be Kardeşim (Life’s Good, Brother)
The latest addition to my website is Nâzım Hikmet's Yaşamak Güzel Şey Be Kardeşim (Life’s Good, Brother). Nâzım Hikmet is perhaps Turkey's best-known poet but he was also a communist.…
Hasan Ali Toptaş: Gölgesizler (Shadowless)
The latest addition to my website is Hasan Ali Toptaş' Gölgesizler (Shadowless). This is a decidedly strange novel, set partially in a barber's shop in an unnamed city and partially…