Book of the Edge

(Paperback, First)

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Ece Temelkuran is arguably Turkey's most accomplished young writer. In Book of the Edge, she describes an allegorical journey wherein the speaker, or explorer, encounters strange creatures, including a butterfly, bull, swordfish, sow bug, and cruel city dwellers. These poems point to the undeniable connection between all living beings. Born 1973 in Turkey, Ece Temelkuran (www.ecetemelkuran.com) has published eight books of poetry, prose, and nonfiction. An award-winning daily columnist for Milliyet, she was a 2008 visiting fellow at the University of Oxford's Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Translator Deniz Perin received the 2007 Anna Akhmatova Fellowship for Younger Translators.

Reviews

"The poems lead the reader to question the ignorance, knowledge, cruelty, and spirituality of human beings through the explorer's journey. Ece Temelkuran;s exquisite sense of nature and humanity is rendered through Deniz Perin's precise translation, which skillfully conveys the tone of the original Turkish and makes the book a meaningful gift to readers of the English-speaking world." -- World Literature in Review "In Book of the Edge, the three traditions of political poetry, Sufism, and shamanism coalesce to create a collection rife with life and death, body and spirit, serenity and chaos." -- Kiyi Kitabi "The book is, to use Baudelaire's words, an invitation to a voyage. The speaker asks the reader to become an explorer, to leave the city and embark upon a journey of self-discovery. Although each poem stands alone, the poems work together to describe this quest; they turn into a modern, poetic fable, in which speaker, explorer, and reader merge into one. 'You may not know it yet,' says the speaker in the prologue, a wink at what is to come. 'You are just like me.'" -- Deniz Perin, from the introduction "The story itself is incredibly compelling. Because the allegories and metaphors are well grounded, the reader can focus less on exploring esoteric themes and are instead invited to lose themselves wholly in the tale of a journey of self discovery...It's a universal feeling of restlessness that draws the reader in." -- Poetry International

Author Bio

Ece Temelkuran, a poet and journalist, was born in Turkey in 1973. She has published eight books of poetry, prose, and nonfiction. Her investigative journalism books broach subjects that are highly controversial in Turkey, such as Kurdish and Armenian issues, the women's movement, and political prisoners. She currently writes as a columnist for Turkey's Milliyet newspaper. Deniz Perin's Turkish translations have appeared in various national and international literary journals, including Atlanta Review, The New Review of Literature, Poetry International, Transcript, and Words Without Borders.She was a 2007 recipient of the Anna Akhmatova Fellowship for Younger Translators. Her translations of Nazim Hikmet's poetry are forthcoming in the Ecco Book of International Poetry (Harper Collins, 2010). Deniz Perin's Turkish translations have appeared in various national and international literary journals, including Atlanta Review, The New Review of Literature, Poetry International, Transcript, and Words Without Borders.She was a 2007 recipient of the Anna Akhmatova Fellowship for Younger Translators. Her translations of Nazim Hikmet's poetry are forthcoming in the Ecco Book of International Poetry (Harper Collins, 2010).