Lonely Planet İstanbul Guide

Though not part of the National Literature movement, İrfan Orga (1908– 70) is probably the most famous Turkish literary figure of the 20th century. His 1950 masterpiece Portrait of a Turkish Family is his memoir of growing up in İstanbul at the start of the century and is among the best writing about the city ever published. Turkish novelist, poet, songwriter and film director OZ Livaneli (b 1946) has written 15 bestsellers but only one, the acclaimed 2003 novel Bliss ( Mutluluk in Turkish), is available in an English-language edition. Dealing with weighty issues such as honour killing and partially set in İstanbul, it was made into a film in 2007. Politician, essayist and novelist Ahmet Hamdi Tanipar (1901–62) wrote A Mind at Peace in 1949. Set in the city at the beginning of WWII, it is beloved by many Turks. Another of his novels, The Time Regulation Institute, was released in an English-language edition for the first time in 2014.