World literature tour: Turkey

Turkey was the most hotly debated destination on the World literature tour to date. Confouded_Turk's call for "everyone to strictly concentrate on literature" was honoured more in the breach than by observance. But in amongst the politics was a veritable feast of recommendations, from Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk to 16th-century Ottoman poet Fuzuli, and from the "untranslatable" Oguz Atzy to the thriller writer Akif Pirincci.

Below you'll find a summary of your recommendations - or at least as many as we could make out - split into genres and listed alphabetically. Or you could go back and read the original blog in full.

Fiction

Halide Edip Adivar
"One of the most influential women writers in modern Turkey ... Her fascinating life as a feminist and nationalist in the early years of the Republic was fictionalised in the recent American novel Halide's Gift by Frances Kazan. However, Adivar's own writing is much more interesting. Her memoirs ... were republished in 2003 under the title House with Wisteria" - CDS
The Clown and His Daughter
One of the classic novels of Turkish literature ... actually written in English ... a portrait of life in Istanbul in the late Ottoman period. It was originally published in the 1920s, but has been out of print for decades and is quite hard to find. Adivar then translated/rewrote the book herself in Turkish with the title Sinekli Bakkal (The Grocery Shop with Flies) and it is still one of her best-known works" - CDS

Sabahattin Ali
"Short stories ... his usage of Turkish is unbelievably refreshing, brilliant" - Ercan E Kuruoglu
Kurk Mantolu Madonna - "A very underrated novel" - Naz Erkan

Ahmet Altan
Kilic Yarasi Gibi - Like a Sword Wound
"A woman breaking free from her suppressed sexuality in the last days of the Empire (translated into German) ... brilliant" - Ayse Kolat

Meltram Arikan
"Addresses women's issues at a depth and ... writes with a directness noted by the Turkish literary mafia" - Andy

Oya Baydar
"Excellent insight, vivid descriptions" - Emel Soylu
Erguvan Kapisi (The Gate of Lilacs)
"The encounter of a historian with himself while searching the lost past of a nation" - Emel Soylu
Kedi Mektuplari (Letters from A Cat)
"Also an excellent reflection of a life in exile" - Emel Soylu
Farewell Alyosha
"Her only novel I know is translated into English" - Emel Soylu

Enver Ahmet Celebi
Camus of Galata - T Swain
The Decades - "A work described by Saul Bellow as "a snow shouldered mountain - the ascent of which divides the adult reader from witless child" - T Swain

Mehmet Coral
"He goes head on into the 5000 years of history of the land he's born and raised and stuns his readers inside out" - Koray Ander
The Echo of the Universe
"The story of Ottoman architect Sinan, probably the most underestimated great architect of history" - Koray Ander
The Ashes of Smyrna
"He describes the Greek 'Megali Idea' in such a form that even Virginia Woolf would envy" - Koray Ander
The Rusty Sun
"He analyses the depths of how people are converted into death producing suicide bombers" Koray Ander

Asli Erdogan
"A strong and genuine voice of new generation. A great contribution to women's literature" - C
The City in Crimson Cloak - C

Moris Farhi
Young Turk - Dmetri Kakmi
Children of the Rainbow
"Astounding ... this sprawling novel about gypsies gives the term 'magic realism' a whole new meaning" - Dmetri Kakmi

Sait Faik
"Brilliant short story writer... He has a very human, touching tone ... a very honest and delicate sound of Turkish life - Ercan E Kuruoglu

Furuzan
A Summer Full of Love - Govinda27

Guneli Gun
On the Road to Baghdad
"A stunning historical novel" - Helen Carmichael

Resat Nuri Guntekin
"One of the best classic novelists ... in his novels you can see Turkey's transition from Empire to Republic ... you can feel love and hate deep inside, how families separate because of generational clashhes" - gozde
Calikusu (Wren)
"Published in English in 1949 as Autobiography of a Turkish Girl, and Aksam Gunesi (Evening Sun) ... well-known and well-liked by Turkish reaaders and published as Afternoon Sun in 1951 ... Unfortunately both the translated titles are out of print" - N Dereli

Rifat Ilgaz
Fourth Company - Govinda27

Bilge Karasu
The Garden of Departed Cats "Not to be missed" - Saliha Paker

Sema Kaygusuz
"Writes very subtle stories without being wordy" - poco_o

Orhan Kemal
"Kemal has written some great short stories. Very short, bittersweet glimpses of everyday life" - RJ

Yasar Kemal
"Shortlisted for Nobel prize several times ... he managed to turn sad stories into epic novels of mithological dimension and standing" - Ercan E Kuruoglu
"His depictions of Anatolia, as well as the indigenous Anatolian culture - which is diminishing gradually - are admirable" - Velihan Erdogdu
Memed, my Hawk
"I'd heartily reccommend most of his work for the sheer ability to conjure up images of the Anatolian plains" - Ian Garrett
"Read it as soon as possible. A great book with lots of pastoral motives from southern Turkey, and a beautiful plot. I think only the first book is interpreted to English, but in fact it is a series of four" - Onat

Perihan Magden
"The one to read to understand what is going on in Turkey now" - nathalie s

Murathan Mungan
"Along with Pamuk, he is the most controversial and contemporary writer in Turkey. His alternative sexuality is imprinted in his writing which can be at times very moving, thought provoking and saddening - Ercan E Kuruoglu
"Openly gay, Mungan has been one of the few symbols of the Turkish gay movement ... I like [his] short stories a lot" - Cagdas Agirdas

Aziz Nesin
"A satirical, comical writer with a strong political background" - Ercan E Kuruoglu
"Satirical novels about Turkish society ... highly critical of government and politicians. Well worth reading" - Nuray Sumbultepe Keegan

Selim Ozdogan
Die Tochter des Schmieds (The Blacksmith's Daughter) "Portrait of a girl growing up in 1950s Turkey, which goes up against all the cliches of forced marriage, violence and honour killings ... in German Society" - Cheater

Emine Sevgi Ozdamar
Mutterzunge (Mothertongue)
"About a woman in search of her original lannguage" - Govinda27
Life is a Caravanserai - Govinda27

Orhan Pamuk
"His originality, honesty, artistry and clarity put him in my personal pantheon of the greats. He shows us the soul of Istanbul and of Turkishness. Long may he live and write in his native city!" - joana
My Name is Red - "A tour de force" - Ian Garrett
"Staggering" - Jinbad
The Black Book - zybine
Snow
"Most instructive about a culture and a way of life I know nothing about" - Clarissa

Akif Pirincci
Felidae and sequel Felidae on the Road
"Clever thrillers with a cat, Francis, as the narrator ... original, factual and funny. I would recommend this if you'd like to read something a bit different. Excellent English translation available" - Tornado

Elif Shafak
"Everyone who is fond of literature should definitely be familiar with her work" - Ayshe Tuba Demirel
"One of the best of the modernists ... She has a different writing style and a broad point of view" - Hande
Flea Palace
"Among the best of the new wave" - Alex Yawar
The Saint of Incipient Insanities
"Written originally in English" - Hande
Mahrem - Ayshe Tuba Demirel
The Bastard of Istanbul
"A completely new and uncovered approach to the 'Armenian' and the 'Turkish'" - Hande

Alp Sargin
The Hill of Goztepe
"A contemporary urban tale of nefarious practices in modern-day Asian-side Istanbul. Unbeatable but now difficult to track down in an English translation" - James Carmichael

Ahmed Hamdi Tanpinar
The Time Regulation Institute
"A great influence on Orhan Pamuk ... adopts an elaborate, laid-back and intensely humorous style ... you are in for a strange and exhilarating experience" - bedri fildisi
"The finest Turkish prose I've ever read (and puts the careless grammars of Pamuk to shame) ... a story so absurd, so complex and so varying in tone, rhythm and characters that one feels the wild disillusionment accompanying loss of empire and switching civilisations" - avid reader
Five cities
"Unequalled source of information written on five cities including Istanbul, Ankara, Bursa, Erzurum" - Ercan E Kuruoglu

Latife Tekin
"The most original voice in 1980s Turkey"
The Beloved Greedy Death - "Her brutally self judging accounts of her political past have provoked criticism" - Ercan E Kuruoglu
Dear Shameless Death - EB
Berji Kristin (Tales from the Garbage Hills) - Govinda27

Burak Turna
Third World War - "A great, European type of bestseller" - Memedo
"A must to understand the deep realities of today's world politics" - Ahmet Celebi

Orkun Ucar
Rebel - "A perfect fantasy book ... Go for it ... " keriman

Gunduz Vassaf
Prisoners of Ourselves (Cehenneme Ovgu) - Cagri Ozkose-Biyik

Feridun Zaimoglu
"Don't forget Turkey's huge diaspora in Germany. My favourite writers are Selim Ozdogan and Feridun Zaimoglu, both of whom write in German. They're not published in English but you can read a good translation of two Zaimoglu short stories at www.litrix.de" - Cheater

Non-fiction

Caroline Finkel
Osman's Dream
"I can't recommend it strongly enough ... It's the first complete Ottoman history by an expert in the field, and apart from being fascinating of itself it really helped me understand the context of the place when I visited Turkey earlier this year" - Sarah L

Lord Kinross
Ataturk: the Birth of a Nation - egemen

Ayse Kulin
"A great way of telling stories of well known Turkish families, descendants of the Ottoman Dynasty and entourage" - Ayse Kolat

Philip Mansel
Constantinople - City of the World's Desire: 1453-1924
"Enlightening" - egemen

Irfan Orga
Portrait of a Turkish Family
"Provides an insight into the loyalties of Turkish family life and also conveys a moving experience of the hardships endured during the first part of the 20th century - one which brings a better understanding of Turkish people and their culture" - Louise Honeyman

Faruk Ulay
"A Los Angeles based jazz critic, visual artist, and undervalued writer - Ercan E Kuruoglu

Poetry

Edip Cansever - EB

Fuzuli
"The most profound Turkish poet concering love. Even though he is not famous, he is as skilful as Shakespeare. You can put the story of Leyla and Mejnun above Romeo and Juliet" - mehmet ergani
Leyla and Mejnun translated by the Azeri Literature Team - rex_tremendae

Nazim Hikmet
"A must read ... if you can't read in Turkish, I hope the translations did justice to his amazing wordcraft" - egemen
"A truly fabulous poet and there are some effective English translations" - Helen Carmichael
"Adds such hidden and sneaky rhymes into his poems that when you read it, you hear the melody of the poem as well" - Tulay Balaban Pifer
"When I read Nazim I cry" - ceren
Human Landscapes
"A stubborn Stalinist but his poems are full of the 'milk of human kindness' ... good narrative poems but not epic" - Roger Brown
English translations - rex_tremendae

Orhan Veli Kanik
"Good stuff. Lots of tales of bars and booze, and scenes of Istanbul. Translations are at www.orhanveli.net." - Simon Kitchen
"A great alcoholic poet - his last poem was found wrapped around his toothbrush - good for anyone who likes Larkin or William Carlos Williams (urban grit and well-observed scenes of untrancendent living)" - Roger Brown
Translations by Murat Nemet-Nejat - rex_tremendae

Rumi
"The bestselling poet in the US in the 1990s ... a classically trained Muslim cleric who taught sharia law in a madrasa in what is now Turkey ... Rumi has been mysteriously morphed from a medieval scholar of Islamic law, or fiqh, into an American new age guru" - BILGIN GUVEN

Turgut Uyar - EB

Theatre

Memet Baydur - EB

Untranslated

Sait Faik Abasiyanik
"His stories are so humane that it touches your heart. An honest and delicate sound of life in Istanbul" - Selin

Pir Sultan Abdal - avid reader

Mehmet Acar
Siyah Hatiralar Denizi (Sea of Black Memories) - Timucin Savas
Hayatin Anlami (Meaning of Life) - Timucin Savas

Sunay Akin - a.k.

Ishar Oktay Anar
"A really brilliant author, writing stories and novels of the Ottoman period" - Mahir
"Numero uno among contemporary authors ... His novels are half-historic, half-fantastic and he uses such a beautiful type of narration combining modern Turkish and Ottoman Turkish together" - Emrah Dincer

Duygu Asena
Kadinin Adi Yok "One of the best writers in Turkey ... a great novel" - Gozde

Oguz Atay
"A perhaps 'untranslatable' novelist for any fans of authors like Joyce, Calvino, Gombrowicz ... Keep your eyes peeled, just in case someone manages a miracle, and shows that Turkish literature can go much further than anything the English world knows so far and really show what being Turkish (and human) is all about ... interested in fallacious thought and reasoning, a real humanist, and his books are hilarious page-turners" - EB
Tutunamayanlar (The Disconnected)
"A masterpiece of modern Turkish literature" - Hulya Ulku

Yusuf Atilgan
Aylak Adam
"Similar in style to Dostoevsky's Notes from the Underground" - Cagri Ozkose-Biyik

Halikarnasis Balikcisi
"One of my favourites" - Graeme Shepherd
Mavi Surgun
"A captivating tale about a journalist imprisoned at the beginning of the Republican era for daring to write about the case of Turkish conscripts executed for fleeing from certain death in the Gallipoli campaign. The story of the journalist's extended journey to captivity near Bodrum reads more like an odyssey than an account of exile and banishment - a little reminiscent of the Italian novel Christ Stopped At Eboli" - Graeme Shepherd

Yucel Balku
"[His] short stories are comparable to Tolstoy's. His prose is refreshingly unique and his narration highly authentic. Try "Sukut Ayyuka Cikar" if you fancy a short journey into eastern mysticism" - Yasemin Balandi

Turan Dursun - Onur Erbas

Ferit Edgu
Kimse - "Very sinister but also very intimate" - RJ

Yunus Emre
"A 13th-century Turkish poet and mystic, who had an immense influence on Turkish literature" - Adroit

Nazli Eray
"She integrates surrealism to popular forms, popular culture and everyday reality in Turkey, she also succeeds in writing popular fiction at its best" - SelchukAkgul
Monday by the Sea
"Intensely readable and a supreme page-turner" - SelchukAkgul

Muzaffer Izgu
"One of Turkey's best authors ... well worth reading" - kadir oncu

Refik Halit Karay
Memleket Hikayeleri (Stories from the Country)
"Gripping" - Charlie Brown

Karacaoglan - avid reader

Necip Fazil Kisakurek
"The sultan of the poets in Turkey" - Alperen Uzbek
"Unsurpassed in his genius of moulding words to create a distinct human reality" - ibrahim meczup

Tuna Kiremitci
"One of the most amazing writers in turkey" - tevfik avcu

Emre Kongar
Hocaefendi'nin Sandukasi
"A very well written and an interesting novel with a similar style to Umberto Eco" - Selin

Ahmet Hasim
"If you don't know Ahmet Hasim, you don't know Montaigne" - Alper CELEBI

Mevlana - mehmet asim

Behcet Necatigil - E Gencay

Nedim - avid reader

Yilmaz Odabasi
"An impressive poet with opposing ideas against the widespread conception of literature" - C

Ismet Ozel
"The greatest living Turkish poet" - neko

Ferhan Sensoy
"Entertaining and instructive" - cem demirsoy

Cemal Sureyya
"Playing with sentence structure and creating new words" - Tulay Balaban Pifer

Kemal Tahir
Devlet Ana - Onat
Esir Sehir - Onat

Mehmmet Unver
Red Light District
"In this striking novel he disclosed the shocking life of the people who born on the other side of the river" - Yorum

Halit Ziya Usakligil
Ask-i Memnu (The Forbidden Love)
"A very important novel not only for Turkish literature but also the world literature. It is a first in the world that does a profound psychoanalysis of its characters, offering insights to the sequence of events in the novel. He takes his characters from the earliest time possible ... and has the reader observe how they grow up and how their emotions take shape. It would be a perfect example to understand issues in psychology like Electra complex" - Lingua Franco

Murat Uyurkulak
Tol - Timucin Savas
Har - Timucin Savas

Buket Uzuner - erasmus
Kumaral Ada Mavi Tuna
"Her best novel" - N.A.

Gunduz Vassaf - Onur Erbas

Anthology

The Penguin Book of Turkish Verse
"Shows the breadth of the Turkish poetry ... Unfortunately, as seems to be the inevitable fate of the English translations of works of Turkish literature, this title is out of print at present" - N Dereli