Çiğdem Akyol - Beloved Mother - Canim Annem

In "Beloved Mother - Canım Annem", journalist Çiğdem Akyol writes with great empathy about the first generation of guest workers, about dreams, injuries and the longing for freedom.

When Aynur is married to Alvin, the tulips are blooming in Istanbul. Aynur is 19 years old, likes to wear flared pants and fitted blouses and has nothing but scorn for women wearing headscarves. Alvin, a man from the village, uneducated and from a pious family, works underground in Germany. Almanya is a promise that has never enticed Aynur, but her brother wants her out of the house and she has to comply. The siblings Meryem and Ada have long since grown up when Alvin dies. It is a happy day for them. The wounds inflicted on them by both parents in their shared misfortune are too deep.

Çiğdem Akyol tells of the consequences of a forced marriage, the loss of identity and an enduring longing to belong and return home. However, the story also shows how Ada and Meryem manage to break out of class barriers, assert themselves and rise to the top. Tragedy, hope and joy stand side by side in this novel.

Following her biography of Erdoğan and the non-fiction book "The Divided Republic", Çiğdem Akyol has now written her first novel: in "Beloved Mother - Canım Annem", she relentlessly tells the story of different women, identity, home, violence and class.