Yashar Kemal tells of his own Anatolian Myths in a poetic style. Descriptions of the flames, reflection of ignorance, these are all very well expressed in the book, in a way that emotions and myths turn in to real, both for the villagers and the readers. Yashar Kemal turned out to be a myth in Turkish literature, because of his style of reflecting the unknown Anatolia for the urban population of the Turkey and the myths and unwritten literature of Turks, Kurds and many other ethnic groups of Cukurova. Also you should be aware that the Cukurova you will read in "Iron Earth, Copper Sky" and his other books won't be the same Cukurova you may visit today. Once in an interview, Yashar Kemal claims that "If I had written the exact Cukurova, why would I want to write it?". You should read "Iron Earth, Copper Sky" to see how being raised on a land of myths shapes a man and how a man, a writer, shapes the myths.

A tremendous tale which is full of humanity, humour and allegory. The faith in life and the fallibility of the human race are wonderfully portrayed here by Turkey's greatest writer of the century.

A fitting and devastating finale to his trilogy. Kemal explores in "The Wind from the Plain" series the goodness, evil, and drive for self-destruction that is immanent in all humanity. In his analysis and hilarious tales of man's constant need for deification and iconoclasm, Kemal has shown that if anyone deserves to be one of the greatest writers from Turkey and the Middle East, he is the one.

Yasar Kemal's book, Memed My Hawk, written in the late fifties when Turkey was still a mainly agrarian society, is a folk tale about a young villager's struggle for freedom from the yoke of the local landlord. These landlords (Agas) controlled much of the arible land in Turkey where tenant farmers and villagers struggled to make a living. Under the power and control of the Agas, daily life for villagers was full of frustration and suffering.

The Turkish title, Ince Memed, which translates "Skinny Memed", relates to the physical attributes of the main character whereas the English title refers to Memed's heroism. Rich in symbolism and highly lyrical, the story engulfs the reader in Memed's (perhaps Yasar Kemal's) burdened life and his fight against Abdi Aga's unjust and despotic rule. Edouard Roditi's excellent translation provides for the reader the full range of colors with which Yasar Kemal paints his epic portrait.

In the early sixties when Peter Ustinov was in Istanbul to promote his play, "Photo Finish", he endeared himself to the Turks and walked away with the movie rights to Memed, My Hawk. The movie, which Ustinov made later under the same title, was a poor adaptation of Yasar Kemal's wonderful story. Ustinov's portrayal of Abdi Aga was forgettable. Pity.

I started book on a Friday night and ended up reading until the first lights of day. I had to get an early breakfast to continue reading. Such is the captivity of the story of "Memed the Skinny".

"Memed My Hawk" is Yasar Kemal's most famous novel, and is followed by 3 sequels. It's the story of a rebellious young boy in Southern Turkey in 1930s versus the tyranny of the feudal lord. However, please do not pick up this book expecting a locally consticted fairy tale. Mr Kemal, a nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature, has always written about universal struggles against opression in with substantial depth and successful clarity.

Mr Kemal is known for his detailed descriptions of the natural and political environment around the Taurus mountains - which incidentally happen to be the birthplace of this reviewer - with a rich, colorful language. Unfortunately, I am unable to comment on the (English) translation since I have read the book in its original Turkish edition only. But I must advise the (English) reader to look for the best translation of the work if at all possible.

Please do not consider me biased because we share the same hometown with Mr Kemal(which is a very important aspect of Turkish friendships). But I can easily say that this is the first thing you must read if you are entering the world of Yasar Kemal and Turkish Literature. And you must follow this by Orhan Pamuk's "Black Book"...

The book is originally called "Ince Memed". It's Yasar Kemal's most famous and the best novel that I have ever read. It is an adventure type novel and tells the story about a boy called Memed and his life from as a child to teenager and to much older days. Memed lives in south of Turkey in a mountain village. Life standarts are very low and people are not happy because there is a very old system. Villages are controlled by wealthy men who are called as "Aga" in Turkish. In this story Memed gives a war against the Aga of his village and his own life. This is another "must read" book from Yasar Kemal and explains the humanity really well. I can surely say that this the best book I have ever read.

A good story told vividly, old world setting, unusal people, customs and surroundings. His telling is like a bright painting. Even though translation, which done by no other than Y. Kemal's recently departed dear Thilda who did almost all of his translations, inevitably costs some of the luster of the language and depth of expression, it is still haunting.
The setting is his beloved Cukurova. People, a mosaic of the Anatolia he dreams, Turcomans, Kurds, Arabs, Armenians, Circassians, and all who have called it home, their customs, rituals, and fears and conflicts parade in the book.
What may not be too obvious to someone not familiar is that, he draws a picture of the landscape that is about a century old almost. Early days of the Republic, institutions and culture in transition, melting pot of the Empire slowly in reverse, turmoils and tragedies of World War I still quite fresh. A theme that comes up quite often in Kemal's books, and gets a little old. He seems to have been stuck in a certain time period.
The book is pleasant to read. His style of mixing time slices and simple, non-analytic prose relying more on painting of scenes and people is quite powerful. Some of those scenes tend to be rather violent and uncut, remiscent of the "Koylu" writers movement that was so popular in Turkey in the 50s and 60s.
Like many of his works, this book also reflects the rich texture and traditions of Anatolia. Y. Kemal is certainly one of the greatest story tellers of our time. Recommended read.

just imagine you are almost dead. someone finds you and flames the hopes in you to be a part of a family. here in this story, salman is the little boy found by Ismail -a father of a family escaping from russian soldiers in the eastern part of turkey-. Salman sees Ismail as his new father figure, and by the time Ismail's wife gives birth to a new child, Salman's love to Ismail turns to hatred that will lead to destruction... Yasar Kemal, not only known well in his home country -Turkey-, a writer who has lots of books translated into so many languages. One you will never regret to know.

Superb story.Kemal's style is poetic .He is definitely one of the greatest writers of all times

Perhaps I expected a Turkish/Kurdish "And Quiet Flows the Don". But unlike Sholokov , Kemal has a very poor ear for dialogue. The bulk of this novel revolves around a kvetching mother and her much abused son traveling to the coastal cotton-fields. Much of the invective is of the "may the fleas of a thousand camels infest your crotch" genre. Long before the end of their journey, you are thoroughly sick of the childish behavior of the characters, and this miserable tale , poorly told.

The author makes little note of the landscape of the Taurus mountains transversed. Little insight is offered into traditional Turkish village life, unless that it must have been wretchedly insular and unhappy. The characters are little more than cardboard figures from which a long stream of insults, curses, and threats issue forth.

I do not understand why this book is held in esteem. Is it because it is exotic literature from a little known culture? Is Turkish literature in such dire straits that this author's work is touted as some pinnacle of achievement?

I can't imagine where or how others saw poetry and lyricism in this pontless literary effort. A true waste of the readers time.

Can story-telling get any better than this? Do yourself a favour and start reading Kemal's books now. He's indeed one of the world's leading writers for the Nobel.