The Lost Word

Overview: One of the most acclaimed and powerful novels of modern Turkey is set across Europe, but retains the Turkish-Kurdish conflict at its heart Acclaimed author Ömer Eren has writer's block - he has lost his 'word'. After meeting a distressed young Kurdish couple on the run from the Turkish authorities, Kurdish resistance-movement guerrillas and the woman's own family, things begin to change, however. Emotionally distanced from his scientist wife and his son, Ömer travels to the couple's homeland, where, as he becomes involved with an extraordinary woman and begins to comprehend the complexities of the region, he regains his sense of purpose and his creativity as hope returns. A mixture of thriller, love story and political novel, The Lost Word, by the acclaimed Oya Baydar explores the effects of violence, misplaced ambition and loss of integrity with its associated guilt, anxiety and despair. Through Ömer's journey to the east of Turkey we have a window on the Kurdish predicament from the inside and the devastating oppression and armed conflict that the Kurdish people witness daily. 'Oya Baydar's fine novel brings the Turkish conflict to the fore . . . In a compelling, polyphonic structure, the journeys of the protagonists are interspersed . . . That this welcome arrival in English of an important Turkish novelist coincides with a major resurgence in the Kurdish war makes it even more timely.' - Maya Jaggi, Guardian One of the most acclaimed and powerful novels of modern Turkey is set across Europe, but retains the Turkish-Kurdish conflict at its heart A mixture of thriller, love story, political, and psycho-philosophical novel, this is a sobering, coruscating introduction to the potentially explosive situation that exists between the Kurds and the Turkish state. A bestselling author suffering from writer's block witnesses the accidental shooting of a young Kurdish woman who loses the baby she is carrying. He becomes involved with her and the two families caught in the fallout of the Turkish-Kurdish conflict, eventually finding a true understanding of the situation and rediscovering his own creativity with a new moral certainty, stripped of any ideology or prejudice. But there are many gripping perspectives to this vital and ultimately uplifting story from one of Turkey's most acclaimed writers, now translated into English for the first time. The Main Subject Of Lost Word Is Violence Towards The Other. Various Forms Of Violence (cutting Up Lab Animals, Imposing Our Values On Our Children, Assasinations, Armed Clashes, Honor Killings, Wars, Etc.) Are Told And Examined Through Stories Which Unfold From Three Different Branches. The Relationship Between People And Violence Is Reflected From Its Various Aspects. Oya Baydar ; Translated By Stephanie Ateş. Translated From The Turkish. The main subject of Lost Word is violence towards the other. Various forms of violence (cutting up lab animals, imposing our values on our children, assassinations, armed clashes, honor killings, wars, etc.) are told and examined through stories which unfold from three different branches. The relationship between people and violence is reflected from its various aspect