For anyone who may be curious about Turkish Children’s Literature, this week we welcome Gülşah Özdemir Koryürek and Ece Citelbeg to the blog. In today’s post, they offer us an introduction to the children’s literature scene in Turkey and share some bestselling Turkish books that have already been translated into English…
Written by Gülşah Özdemir Koryürek, Edited and Translated from Turkish by Ece Citelbeg
The first seeds of children’s literature in Turkey were planted long before the tradition of printed books. The distinctive feature of this early period is one based on oral cultures, such as folk legends, lullabies, nursery rhymes, heroic tales or religious stories. Around the time of the Tanzimat Period – defined as the movement of westernisation in the second quarter of the 1800s – these oral works were turned into written texts, and some children’s books of western origin began to appear in Turkish. With the proclamation of the Republic in 1923, the alphabet revolution and the beginning of educational mobilisation, children’s literature in its current sense began.
In the first 50 years of the Republic, works for children were primarily designed to prepare them for citizenship and social life according to the period’s ideology. They were generally realistic and instructive. The development of children’s literature was also shaped by Orhan Veli, one of Turkey’s most important poets, and his adaptations of La Fontaine’s fables and his compilation of Nasrettin Hoca’s Anecdotes. Other influential writers from this period include Ahmet Rasim, Ziya Gökalp, Ömer Seyfettin, Peyami Safa, Kemalettin Tuğcu, and Eflatun Cem Güney. Eflatun Cem Güney received the “Hans Christian Andersen Award”, “Andersen Honor Diploma” and “World Children’s Literature Honor Certificate” for his fairytale compilations.
During the 1970s, authors such as Aziz Nesin, Rıfat Ilgaz, Muzaffer İzgü, and Gülten Dayıoğlu began to introduce the notion of ‘suitability for children’, and Can Göknil brought the art of painting to children’s literature. In 1978, UNESCO declared the following year International Year of the Child which encouraged some of the country’s most important literary figures – Yaşar Kemal, Orhan Kemal and Nazım Hikmet Ran – to publish works for children. The first children’s publishing house, Mavi Bulut Yayınları was founded in the 1980s by author Fatih Erdoğan. This was a fascinating period when significant writers such as Yalvaç Ural, Behiç Ak and Sevim Ak started producing books.
In the 1990s, the children’s publishing industry in Turkey began to develop, with an increase in the number of writers and books. More publishing houses also became involved with children’s literature, investing both intellectually and financially. One of the most significant of these was Günışığı Kitaplığı. The writers, illustrators and editors that this publishing house brought to the industry offered a new perspective on children’s literature. With their wide range of titles and content, other noteworthy presses from this time are Mavi Bulut, Can Çocuk Yayınları, Altın Kitaplar, Doğan Egmont, Tudem Publishing Group, Timaş Publications, Nesin Publications, İthaki Child, İletişim Child, Word Publications, Redhouse Kids, Dinozor Child.
Here is a summary of some Turkish authors and their books that have already been translated into English. Sadly, for some of these books, the information about who translated them is unavailable.
Picture Books:
Feridun Oral is a contemporary Turkish writer and illustrator who has been recognised both in Turkey and internationally. He has written and illustrated more than thirty books and his works have been exhibited numerous times at the “Exhibition of Illustrators” at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. He was a runner-up for the Noma-Concours for Picture Book Illustration organised by UNESCO in Japan in 1992 with his book Blackberry Gin and Yellow Beak. In 2001, he was awarded the European Illustrators’ Biennial Honor Award for his work Dream Cats.
A lyrical story about a cute bunny looking for ways to fill his stomach on a cold winter day; he cooperates with other animals in the forest to reach the red apple. This book written and illustrated by Feridun Oral is among the bestsellers in Turkey and is recommended to students by many educational institutions. In 2001, this book was chosen as the “Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year” by IBBY Turkey. The book was released in an iPhone/iPad version by WingedChariot Publishing and became the first Turkish children’s book published in English on the Internet. Published by MineditionUS.
Written and illustrated by Oral, this story starts with Leo the Cat who is bored. He lives in a wooden house on the edge of the forest and this tale evolves into a beautiful story of friendship. Published in English by Minedition Publishing.
Based on an exciting gift a little boy received from his grandfather when he started primary school, the book establishes a dialogue with the reader using some blank pages and unpainted sketches, giving space for the reader to add their own dreams to the little’s boy’s grandfather’s notebook of daydreams. Translated by Hazel Bilgen, published in English by YKY Publishing in Turkey.
Aytül Akal has produced 180 works during her writing life and has received many national and international awards, including a nomination in 2010 for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. In 2017, The Flying Grandpa, written with Mavisel Yener, was the first picture book from Turkey to be shortlisted for the Scholastic Picture Book Award. The Skeleton in the Lost Library, which she wrote with Mavisel Yener, was included in the International Found In Translation Anthology 2015.
The King of Seasons’ Birthday
The King of Seasons celebrates his birthday every year on the first day of Autumn. He takes off his paints and starts working to celebrate his birthday; he has to draw Autumn and change all summer colours. However, the king can’t do it, probably because someone doesn’t want the summer to end. This book was met with great interest by English readers. Published by Uçanbalık Yayıncılık.
My Grandad’s Magical Wardrobe
Coming straight out of Aytül Akal’s rich imagination, this work is a fascinating illustrated story based on the meeting of a boy who lost his grandfather meeting with his new grandfather. The illustrations belong to one of Turkey’s most influential illustrators, Mustafa Delioğlu. Published by Uçanbalık Yayıncılık.
Other books translated into English
Three Cats, One Wish is one of Sara Şahinkanat’s most popular books. It tells the heart-warming adventures of three very different friends, Piti, Pati and Pus. The book emphasises the importance of working together to achieve a dream. Illustrated in the fairy-tale style by Ayşe İnan Alican. Published by YKY Publishing.
A Wonderful Day in Istanbul
Duygu İçil’s book tells the story of three friends and their cat, who stroll the streets of Istanbul to show the city to their friends from abroad, taking children on a beautiful historical journey. Published by Altın Kitaplar in English.
Middle Grade:
Grandpa’s Grocery Store
Şermin Yaşar is one of the most reputable contemporary Turkish authors. Her book My Grandpa’s Grocery Store is a story full of fun facts from a child’s mind. The funny anecdotes of a small-town girl who dreams of making a big commercial breakthrough in her grandfather’s grocery store make readers laugh out loud.
The Beyoglu Adventure
Sara Şahinkanat’s adventure book for children aged 8+ takes place in Beyoğlu, one of the oldest districts of Istanbul. Along with his dog Bilgin, Knowledge Hunter Sinan’s mission becomes an adventure thanks to the Password Pirates, taking readers to historical places on the streets of Beyoğlu. The book, which is a work of art with Ayşe İnan Alican’s beautiful illustrations, has an interactive structure, inviting its readers to decipher the codes hidden in the story. Published by Yellow Pear Press.
Reference list
Koyuncuoğlu, A. (2021). Çocuk Edebiyatının Dünya’daki ve Türkiye’deki Tarihsel Gelişimi. Spor, Eğitim ve Çocuk. 1 (1), 1-16. DOI: 10.5505/sec.2021.25743
Onur AKBAŞ, DÜNYADA VE TÜRKİYE’DE ÇOCUK EDEBİYATI’NIN GELİŞİMİ Afyon Kocatepe Üniversitesi, Fen Edebiyat Fakültesi, Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Bölümü Tezli Yüksek Lisans Öğrencisi, No:080623005
Yalvaç Ural, Anadolu Ajansı Röportajı: Yalvaç Ural: “Çocuk edebiyatı bir kuyumcunun yüzüğe minik inciler kakması gibidir.”
https://www.turkedebiyati.org/turk-cocuk-edebiyati.html
Türk Çocuk Edebiyatı – Meral ALPAY
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Gülşah Özdemir Koryürek was born in 1984 in Istanbul. She worked in theatre for fifteen years writing scripts and plays and has also written and directed documentaries. She conducts creative drama and writing workshops with children. Since 2015, she has been working as a writer, designer and editor at Sıfırdan Publishing, of which she is co-founder. Her work focusses on environmental issues, trying to make the Climate Crisis a subject of children’s literature. www.sifirdanyayinlari.com/sifirdanpuplishinghouse Instagram: @gulsahozdemirkoryurek
Ece Citelbeg was born in Ankara in 1988. She is a literary translator and copyright representative based in Cambridge, UK. She is currently studying for an MA in Modern and Contemporary Literature at the Birkbeck University of London. She attends many literary translation workshops worldwide and is a member of the Emerging Translators Network UK (ETN) and Çevbir (Translators’ Association Turkey). Animal welfare and preserving cultural heritage are the principal matters she cares about. She adores cats, queens of pop and literature. www.citelbeg.com Instagram: @ececitelbeg
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