Turkey Book Talk

Michael Wuthrich chats about "National Elections in Turkey: People, Politics and the Party System" (Syracuse University Press), a rich and provocative book that overhauls much conventional wisdom about Turkish politics shared by right and left. Support the Turkey Book Talk podcast by making a donationsmall or large via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan,Steve Bryant, Andrew Cruickshank and Aaron Ataman.

Ece Temelkuran joins the pod to discuss her new book “Turkey: The Insane and the Melancholy” (Zed Books), a vivid and personal account of the current state of the country.  Support the Turkey Book Talk podcast by making a donation small or large via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant, Andrew Cruickshank and Aaron Ataman.

Bilge Yeşil speaks about her book “Media in New Turkey: The Origins of an Authoritarian Neoliberal State” (University of Illinois Press), tracing problems in the Turkish media back to the 1980s.  Support the Turkey Book Talk podcast by making a donation small or large via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant, Andrew Cruickshank and Aaron Ataman.

Cem Emrence on his book “Remapping the Ottoman Middle East: Modernity, Imperial Bureaucracy and Islam” (IB Tauris). The book looks at Ottoman modernization through the 19th and early 20th centuries using an original “three-trajectory” model: The coast, the interior, and the frontier. If you like Turkey Book Talk and want to support independent podcasting, you can make a small or large monetary donation to the show via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant and Andrew Cruickshank.

Maureen Freely joins to discuss the tragic life of author Sabahattin Ali and her translation of his classic 1943 novel “Madonna in a Fur Coat,” just published in a first ever English edition by Penguin. Support the Turkey Book Talk podcast by making a donation small or large via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant and Andrew Cruickshank.

Umut Uzer of Istanbul Technical University joins to discuss his new book "An Intellectual History of Turkish Nationalism: Between Turkish Ethnicity and Islamic Identity” (Utah University Press). The book explores just how potent nationalism remains in Turkey, where for a century it has run through political traditions across the spectrum. Support the podcast by making a donation small or large via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant and Andrew Cruickshank.

Brookings Institution senior fellow Shadi Hamid joins the pod to discuss his new book 'Islamic Exceptionalism: How the Struggle Over Islam is Reshaping the World' (St Martins), which argues that current troubles in the Middle East are tied to unresolved questions of how Islam relates to the state. You can support the podcast with a per episode donation via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant and Andrew Cruickshank.

Ryan Gingeras returns to the podcast to discuss his new book "The Fall of the Sultanate: The Great War and the End of the Ottoman Empire, 1908-1922" (Oxford University Press). Support the podcast via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporters Özlem Beyarslan, Steve Bryant and Andrew Cruickshank.    

Cihan Tuğal, a sociologist at UC Berkeley, chats about "The Fall of the Turkish Model: How the Arab Uprisings Brought Down Islamic Liberalism" (Verso), charting how Turkey went from a model "Muslim democracy" for the Middle East to an increasingly authoritarian state. You can support the podcast via Patreon. Many thanks to current sponsors Sera Aleksandra Marshall and Andrew Cruickshank.

Editor Judith Saryan on a new edition of Zabel Yessayan's account of a trip to Adana in the aftermath of pogroms targeting Armenians there in 1909. "In the Ruins: The 1909 Massacres of Armenians in Adana, Turkey" (AIWA) is the first full English edition of the book to be published.  You can support the podcast via Patreon. Many thanks to current supporter Sera Aleksandra Marshall.