Author • Turkish literature

Nazlı Eray

Nazlı Eray was born in Ankara. After studying law in Istanbul University Faculty of Law, she worked as a translator at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. She has been a columnist for various newspapers. Eray, one of the founders of the Turkish Authors Association, is a member of the Writers Syndicate of Turkey and PEN International. She took part in The International Writing Program of University of Iowa. She stepped into the world of literature with her story Mösyö Hristo, which she wrote in 1959 while still in secondary school. Her first book, Ah Bayım Ah, was published in 1975. She received the 1988 Haldun Taner Short Story Award with her story “Karanfil Gece Kursu” in the book Yoldan Geçen Öyküler. Known for her novels as well as her short stories, Eray received the 2002 Yunus Nadi Novel Award for her novel Aşkı Giyinen Adam, which was published in 2001. Her book, Frej Apartmanı’nın Esrarı, received the Best Children’s Novel Award from IBBY TURKEY in 2009. She received the Best Novelist Award from the Turkish Librarians Association in the same year, the Ankara Capital Rotary Club Vocational Award in 2010 and the Blue Phoenix Award of the Turkish Association for Artists of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 2014. Her stories, novels and plays were translated into many languages. Short films and television series were made from her stories. Her short stories “Monte Kristo” and “Rüya Sokağı” were staged in 2005 by Italian director Angelo Savelli as L’ultimo Harem (The Last Harem). Nazlı Eray, who is considered as the most important representative of the magical realism art movement in Turkish literature, published her memoirs in the titles Tozlu Altın Kafes (2011) and Bir Rüya Gibi Hatırlıyorum Seni (2013). Eray has authored more than seventy books and was selected as the honorary author of the 39th International Istanbul Book Fair. Her novel The Love of Feramuz The Crow (Karga Feramuz’un Aşkı, 2011), joined the Bridge Books collection in 2021.