Ralph Hubbell on Turkish literary giant Oğuz Atay
December 3, 2024
Turkey Book Talk #233 – Ralph Hubbell on translating Oğuz Atay‘s “Waiting for the Fear” (New York Review Books).
Atay is widely seen as one the great Turkish fiction writers of the 20th century, but he has largely yet to appear in English until now. “Waiting for the Fear” is made up of eight short stories and was first published in Turkey in 1975. At under 200 pages, it’s a relatively slender work – a striking contrast with Atay’s most celebrated novel, the sprawling “Tutunamayanlar” (The Disconnected).
The conversation talks about Oğuz Atay’s exploration of paranoia, alienation and absurdity, the humour in his work, as well as his life and the notorious difficulty of translating his fiction.
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