



The Prisoner of Ankara
A Novel
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
An idealistic young man attempts to find his place in a changed world after incarceration, in this Turkish classic from the pioneering writer and activist, now available for the first time in English.
Dreaming of a better life for her son, Vasfi’s mother encourages him to attend medical school, so he can become a great doctor. But Vasfi’s infatuation with the beguiling Zeynep, and his fiery temper, destroy this promising future in a night: Quarreling over Zeynep, he kills his cousin in a drunken brawl, and spends the next 12 years in prison.
After his release, he struggles to get by in a world that has moved on without him. He hardly recognizes Zeynep, now a bitter, tightfisted shop owner. Homeless and unable to find work in Ankara or Istanbul, he relies on the kindness of others: an old woman who offers him shelter, because he reminds her of her lost son; a friend from prison who secures him a job as a construction worker.
In this tragic yet vibrant portrait of a life derailed, Suat Derviş offers an insightful, deeply humane perspective on the margins of society.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Dervis (In the Shadow of the Yali), who died in 1972, chronicles a Turkish man's release from prison after serving 12 years for murder in this uneven novel, which was originally published in 1957. Vasfi, now in his 30s, wanders homeless on the streets of Ankara. In flashbacks, Dervis recounts Vasfi's poor upbringing and tragic downfall in Istanbul, where his widowed mother sacrificed everything in hope of her only son becoming a doctor. At 22, Vasfi falls under the spell of Zeynep, a beautiful but coarse country girl who plays with his emotions. When Zeynep's mother promises her to Vasfi's wealthy old uncle Sakir, Vasfi is unconsolable, as is his cousin, Nuri, who hoped to inherit Sakir's wealth. Nuri disparages his uncle's bride-to-be, prompting a drunken Vasfi to kill him. In Ankara, a stranger gives him half of her cheese sandwich, but he's dirty, unable to find work, and reduced to sleeping at a table in an all-night coffee shop. There is a sense of redemption when he returns to Istanbul to seek out Zeynep, but while Vasfi's brokenness is palpable, his self-pity wears on the reader, as does the slow pacing. This one doesn't quite hold up.