Author • Turkish literature

Gülsevin Kıral

She was born in Eskişehir in 1959. She graduated from Boğaziçi University, Department of Economics and worked in the banking sector for long years. Her articles were published in various literary journals, and she also made translations. Her books Ablamı Nereye Kaçırdılar (2006), and When Fleas Were Barbers and Camels Were Brokers (Berber Pire Tellal Deve, 2008) published by Günışığı Kitaplığı, received awards. Following her book Posta Kutumdan Sihir Çıktı (2006), her detective-like stories “Gizli Silahın Formülü Hangi Zarfta?” and “Ağaçlar Yemek Yapar mı?” received 2006 Sulhi Dölek Award given by IBBY Turkey. These stories are later compiled in a book titled In Which Envelope is the Secret Formula? (Gizli Formül Hangi Zarfta!, 2007) published by Günışığı Kitaplığı. Her adventure novels featuring Istanbul’s architectural monuments, They Are Stealing Istanbul! (İstanbul’u Çalıyorlar, 2010) and Stolen City (Çalınan Kent, 2014) were serialized under the name “Ömer Alwayssolves Detective Agency”. The author’s children’s novels The Hope Street Kids (Umut Sokağı Çocukları, 2015) depicts the lives of refugees through the eyes of children and Up Against the Troublesome Four (Belalı Dörtlü’ye Karşı, 2017) portrays a class uniting against bullying. She brought together her story poems under the title Pretty Kitty Whiffy Kitty (Sarımsaklanır mı Kedi?, 2019) and made readers contemplate prejudice and trust in The Missing Notebook (Kayıp Defter, 2021). In her latest novel Team Medman (Ecmen Takımı, 2024) Kıral links children’s problem-solving skills with technological developments for the benefit of society. Kıral lives in Istanbul with her husband and has two sons.