Turkish Cypriot Kazim Altan’s new book titled Pantelis, consisting of three interconnected long stories, has been published.
Pantelis is made up of short and long immigration stories stretching from Cyprus to London. They include sadness, resentment, the struggle for immigration, and of course love.
In a recent interview, Altan was asked about the stories and his imprecation for them. He said, “In the three stories, I tried to move away from the narrative and show the events and emotions as much as possible. My reading style changed in my writing adventure. I was not just getting caught up in fiction anymore, but studying the writing technique. So I often thought that writing is a bit like Panteli laying bricks.
“The story was too long so I decided to divide it into two or three interlinked stories.”
Replying to a question on whether the character of Pantelis is based on a real person, Altan said: “He is the son of a Greek Cypriot woman and her Turkish Cypriot lover, but this character could have been the son of a Turkish Cypriot woman and a Greek Cypriot man. I think emotions know no limits. I’m sure we all know a lot of people who decided to go together, ignoring differences. In the story, these two people had only one love.
“Panteli emerged as a result of my imagination blending my life experience. This story is also the story of people born in different geographies who had to emigrate from their country for one reason or another.”
Proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the Mental and Nervous Diseases Hospital in Nicosia, Cyprus.
Mental health is at the centre of these stories – Altan explained: “As in many countries, mental health disorders are a taboo subject in Cyprus despite one sixth of the world’s population having been exposed to them at least once in their lifetime. Among these are my friends, students, war victims, mothers and children who lost themselves as a result of violence.
“This institution tries to help patients control these disorders but it needs financial assistance. I hope the book will be profitable in this sense.”
You can order Pantelis online from https://pressdionysus.com/product/pantelis or email [email protected]