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With a spicy wit, Hatice Akyün depicts the oddities of the Turks and the Germans, and while doing so reveals what it means to be at home in both cultures. Her book is a contribution to a current theme, one never before explored so audaciously, ingeniously, or humorously.
Stories woven around a highly current theme that is examined in such an impertinent, humorous and imaginative way as never before
1001 tales of a life between Berlin and the Bosphorus: amusingly and provocatively, Hatice Akyün explores the peculiarities of the Turks and Germans
Hatice Akyün, from Turkey, has lived in Germany for the past thirty years. She doesn’t wear a head covering, isn’t in an arranged marriage, and has no problem using the dative and genitive cases of the German language correctly. Hatice Akyün loves Germany – but her soul is Turkish. With wit and spirit, she tells of her visit to her homeland of Turkey and of the peculiar traits of her fellow Turks. She describes the image that Turks have of the Germans: that they are all named Hans or Helga, and that Hans goes out every morning to bring home fresh rolls for breakfast. Hatice Akyün takes readers on an entertaining journey through both of her worlds – a treasure of enchanting, captivating and ironic stories.
My name is Hatice Akyün. I’m a Turk with a German passport – for politicians proof of successful integration, for German men forbidden and exotic fruit, and for German women a reason to hate their hair. I could describe myself in a personals add as a ‘spirited southerner with fiery temperament and tempting derriere.’ I don’t cover my head, and I’m still not married. I work as a journalist in Berlin, which means I have a lot a stress and not much money. From time to time I visit my parents in the Ruhr region. And every time I go to Turkey, the question they ask me is, ‘Haven’t you finally found a Hans yet?’
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