Pushkin signs debut from Turkish free-speech activist
Published November 18, 2016 by Natasha Onwuemezi
“Pushkin Press has signed The Peace Machine by journalist and free-speech activist Özgür Mumcu, whose father, an investigative journalist for the Cumhuriyet newspaper, was assassinated when the author was just 15.
Pushkin Press bought World English from the Barbara Zitwer agency on behalf of the Kalem Agency. German and Spanish rights have also been sold.
With a plot spanning the cities of Istanbul, Belgrade and Paris, the novel presents a depiction of Europe as it plunged towards conflict in the days leading up to the Great War, and in doing so offers “keen insights” about today’s world, the publisher said.
Daniel Seton, commissioning editor at Pushkin Press, said: “The Peace Machine, an instant bestseller in Turkey, is both a gripping historical adventure story in the tradition of Verne and Dumas and a powerful, important book for our times. Özgür Mumcu is an extremely exciting new literary voice and I’m absolutely thrilled that his debut will be the first Turkish novel on the Pushkin Press list.”
Pushkin will publish The Peace Machine in 2018.”
by Ozgur Mumcu
April Publishing/Turkey, June 2016.
“Debut literary fiction, novel by Ozgur Mumcu , son of
famous Turkish investigative journalist, Urgur Mumcu,
who wrote for the leading daily Cumhuriyet and was
assassinated by a bomb placed in his car outside his
home when Ozgur was fifteen. Ozgur graduated from
Galatasaray University Faculty of Law, and later
completed his master and doctorate degree in Paris I
Panthéon Sorbonne University. He works as a
research assistant in Galatasaray University and his columns appear in
newspapers such as Birgün, Radikal and Cumhuriyet since 2009. He has huge
number of twitter followers and is fluent in English and French. English partial
translation.
The Peace Machine is set in the early 1900s, a time when new inventions were
shaping the modern world prior to the outbreak of World War I, and the novel
deals with the question of whether or not a peace machine could ever bring an
end to all wars. A bestseller since its release, this compelling novel intertwines the themes of freewill and destiny, philosophy and science, and the past and future.
The Peace Machine has taken the media by storm and been a hit among literary
critics, and the author’s talks and readings from the book have drawn large
audiences. Spanning the cities of Istanbul, Belgrade and Paris, the novel
presents a masterful depiction of the world as it plunged towards global conflict in the days leading up to the Great War, and in doing so it offers keen insights about today’s world as well. The theme of The Peace Machine—namely, the relationship between freewill, war and peace—is brought to life with uprooted characters who are transformed into universal figures as the author questions the very notion of humanity. By exploring the depths of metaphysics and science, the author brings together the realms of reality and fantasy. With its rapid pace, historical setting and energetic language, The Peace Machine has proven to be popular among young adult and adult readers alike. And thanks to its intricate narrative, which weaves together multiple storylines filled with surprising twists and turns, the novel is open to a variety of interpretations.”
Gabriella Ambrosioni Literary Agency 