Turkey Book Talk

Nur Deriş on the life of Sabiha Sertel (1895-1968). Deriş is co-editor of “The Struggle for Modern Turkey: Justice, Activism and a Revolutionary Female Journalist” (IB Tauris/Bloomsbury), the first appearance in English of Sertel's autobiography. The book is a fascinating window into an era covering the war of independence and the single-party period until 1950. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  t...

Emre Erşen, associate professor of international relations at Marmara University and co-editor of “Turkey's Pivot to Eurasia: Geopolitics and Foreign Policy in a Changing World Order” (Routledge), discusses the past, present and future of Ankara's relations with Russia and China. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts of every interview, tr...

Hannah Lucinda Smith on her new book “Erdoğan Rising: The Battle for the Soul of Turkey” (William Collins). Smith has been Turkey correspondent for The Times of London since 2013 and her book is a part-biography of President Erdoğan, part-journalistic account of contemporary Turkish history. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts of every i...

Mehmet Fatih Uslu of Istanbul Şehir University on the pleasures and challenges of translating from Armenian into Turkish. Uslu has translated a number of significant texts, including by the great early 20th century Istanbul Armenian feminist Zabel Yesayan and the 19th century playwright Hagop Baronyan. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts...

Yağmur Karakaya on the rise of Ottoman nostalgia in contemporary Turkish politics and popular culture. Karakaya is the author of "The Conquest of Hearts: The central role of Ottoman nostalgia within contemporary Turkish populism", published in the American Journal of Cultural Sociology. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts of every interv...

Haris Theodorelis-Rigas on Skarlatos Byzantios' "Constantinople" (Istos), a monumental social and historical description of Istanbul written in the mid-19th century. Haris is the translator of the first volume and one of the founders of Istos, a publishing house focusing on the Greek Orthodox heritage of Istanbul and Anatolia. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get Englis...

Elif Mahir Metinsoy on her book “Ottoman Women During World War I: Everyday Experiences, Politics and Conflict” (Cambridge University Press). The book describes the lives of Muslim women in the Ottoman Empire during the Great War, moving beyond a focus on the educated urban population, focusing instead on ordinary masses across Anatolia. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and...

Selim Deringil, professor of history at the Lebanese American University, on “The Ottoman Twilight in the Arab Lands: Turkish Memoirs and Testimonies of the Great War” (Academic Studies Press). The book includes translations and annotations of memoirs by five Ottomans stationed in Syria and the Arab Peninsula during World War One. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get En...

Toygar Sinan Baykan of Kırklareli University on "The Justice and Development Party: Populism, Personalism, Organization" (Cambridge University Press). The book is based on interviews with over 50 members at various levels of Turkey's ruling AKP, giving an intimate glimpse of its internal dynamics and how it benefits from various socio-cultural divides. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support...

Reuben Silverman, author of “Turkey’s Ever Present Past: Stories from Republican Turkish History” and “Politics in Turkey: Parties, Politicians and the Struggle for Power” (Libra Books), talks about his research on contemporary Turkish history. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the archive, access to...

Patrick Keddie on “The Passion: Football and the Story of Modern Turkey” (IB Taurus/Bloomsbury), a sweeping account of the cultural, social, political and economic significance of football in contemporary Turkey. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the archive, access to a 35% discount on over 400 Tur...

Şevket Pamuk, Professor of Economics at Istanbul’s Boğaziçi University, on “Uneven Centuries: Economic Development of Turkey Since 1820” (Princeton University Press). Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the archive, access to a 35% discount on over 400 Turkey/Ottoman history titles published by IB Tau...

Ceren Lord, Research Fellow at Oxford University’s School of Global and Area Studies, on “Religious Politics in Turkey: From the Birth of the Republic to the AKP” (Cambridge University Press). The book argues against the popular binary understanding of modern Turkish history, which pits a monolithic secular state against an authentic religious society. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support...

Doğus Şimşek of Koç University and photographer Yusuf Sayman on “Çabuk Çabuk: Africans in Istanbul” (Pencere Yayınları). The book features text by Şimşek and over 100 photos by Sayman, giving a glimpse into the lives of migrants from a range of African countries struggling to get by in Istanbul. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of e...

Selda Tuncer, assistant professor at Yüzüncü Yıl University, on “Women and Public Space in Turkey: Gender, Modernity and the Urban Experience” (IB Tauris). The book is based on interviews with dozens of women who lived in the Turkish capital Ankara between 1950 and 1980. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcrip...

Selim Koru on his paper: “The Resiliency of Turkey-Russia Relations.” Despite being historic rivals and at odds on many issues, Koru argues that Ankara-Moscow ties are becoming increasingly warm due to a shared underlying worldview, spurred by resentment of the West. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts o...

Maureen Freely on the enduring appeal of Sait Faik Abasiyanik (1906-1954), perhaps Turkey’s greatest short story writer. Freely co-translated a selection of Sait Faik’s stories, published in English as “A Useless Man” (Archipelago). Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the entire archive, access to a 3...

Caroline Eden on “Black Sea: Dispatches and Recipes – Through Darkness and Light” (Quadrille), a richly illustrated part-cookbook, part-travelogue describing places, people and recipes from the Black Sea coasts of Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria to Istanbul, Trabzon and Rize in Turkey. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every intervi...

Yigit Akin on “When the War Came Home: The Ottomans’ Great War and the Devastation of an Empire” (Stanford University Press), a richly researched study on the consequences of the First World War on everyday social life across Ottoman territories as the empire collapsed.  Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcrip...

Lora Sarı on the life, photography and writing of the late Ara Güler, following the publication of "We Will Live After Babylon" (Aras). The book is a collection of Güler's writings, interspersed with his classic photographs. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the entire archive, access to a 30% disco...

Alev Scott on "Ottoman Odyssey: Travels Through a Lost Empire" (Riverrun), her travelogue exploring the past and present of Turkey and the former territories of the Ottoman Empire. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get (English and Turkish) transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the entire archive, access to a 30% discount on over 200 Turkey/Ottoman history title...

Avedis Hadjian on his book "Secret Nation: The Hidden Armenians of Turkey" (IB Tauris). Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get full transcripts (in English and Turkish) of every interview upon publication, transcripts of the entire Turkey Book Talk archive, access to a 30% discount on over 200 Turkey/Ottoman history titles published by IB Tauris, and an archive of over 20...

Begüm Adalet on "Hotels and Highways: The Construction of Modernization Theory in Cold War Turkey" (Stanford University Press). Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get full transcripts (in English and Turkish) of every interview upon publication, transcripts of the entire Turkey Book Talk archive, access to a 30% discount on over 200 Turkey/Ottoman history titles published...

Doğu Eroğlu on "ISIS Networks: Radicalisation, Organisation, Logistics in Turkey” (İletişim), his forensic account of jihadi operations in Turkey and grassroots radicalisation, based on years of on-the-ground reporting. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get full transcripts (in English and Turkish) of every interview upon publication, transcripts of the entire Turkey Boo...

Sinan Yıldırmaz of Istanbul University on "Politics and the Peasantry in Post-War Turkey" (IB Tauris), examining the transition to a multi-party system after the Second World War and the importance of urban migration in shaping politics up to today. Become a Turkey Book Talk member  to support the podcast and get full transcripts (in English and Turkish) of every interview upon publication, transc...