Aydın Tonga discusses his new book Menevşe: Love is like a unique gift... Nothing can replace it, not money, fame, or power

12punto contributor Aydın Tonga has brought his new book, Menevşe, to his readers. Known for his work on the early periods of Islam, Tonga explains that he began writing short stories about five years ago and that the story of Menevşe is based on a short story he wrote during that period titled Azap (Torment).

The author emphasizes that he did not base his book on a true event, but rather tells a story fed by a completely fictional world. Explaining his choice of the name Menevşe as "believing in the magic of love," Tonga invites readers on both an emotional and literary journey with his new book.


We know you for your work in the fields of Islamic history and the history of religions. I believe you haven't had a work in the field of literature before. How did the idea for a short story collection come about? Could you share that with us?

Aydın Tonga: First of all, thank you for giving me this opportunity. As you stated, I have generally worked on theological topics. Specifically, I have studied the early periods of Islam. On the other hand, I can say that I have had a good relationship with books since my childhood. My childhood was spent in a village. We didn't have much access to books, but I still tried to read as much as I could. In the following years, my reading practice gradually developed, and I strove to read books of all kinds and get to know different writers. I said all this for this reason: The more a person reads, the more their love for books and the need to produce that love with their own pen increases. At least that's how it was for me.

So, how did your short story writing process develop, and how did you decide to produce a work in this genre? Honestly, I see this as a task that requires some courage.

Aydın Tonga: It was about five years ago, I think. It might have been the early days of the pandemic. Like many people, I had caught the Covid plague. On one of those nights when I couldn't sleep, I suddenly had an idea and wrote the story titled "Azap," which is also included in the book. However, it wasn't a story I wrote with the intention of publishing it. I wrote it entirely under the psychology of that moment. Afterward, I shared the story with a few close friends whose opinions I value. The feedback was very positive. They even compared me to some writers whose style I also like. Later, my friends suggested that I write short stories. Honestly, these thoughts stayed in my mind, but let's say it was destined for the book to be published today. Ultimately, the story of "Menevşe" dates back to those days.

The book consists of 16 short stories, but the story that gives the book its name is "Menevşe." Does this story have a special meaning for you? Why Menevşe?

Aydın Tonga: Let me put it this way: it doesn't have a special importance for me personally. In other words, Menevşe is not a story I wrote based on a true event. So, why this story? I believe in the magic of love. Like friendship, love is a magnificent bond established between two people, and I think there is no state of existence that can replace this bond. Within this bond, there are feelings/thoughts of compassion, mercy, respect, empathy, love, and many more. Love is like a unique gift... Nothing can replace it, not money, fame, or power. Therefore, I wanted to make this feeling visible with a love story as best as I could. The fundamental thought behind the name stems from this.

Did you have a specific selection method when determining your stories, and how did the stories evolve from you to the page?

Aydın Tonga: I didn't have a specific selection method, but I wanted to address different topics that left a mark on me in some way. Faith is at the forefront of these topics. My stories such as Ahmet Efendi, Abdullah and His Son, and Religion in the Shadow of the Gun were shaped within the theme of faith. I can say that some events I witnessed or experienced influenced the writing of these stories. In fact, the other stories came to life in the book in a similar way, with the same feelings.

In your story "Tears at the Tomb," you also address the relationship between faith and human life, and examine the effect of faith on human life. Ultimately, does Selim undergo a transformation in the name of faith at the end of the story? What exactly is happening here?

Aydın Tonga: Whether it's called transformation or change, I want the reader to decide what point Selim has reached. But for me, the issue is about our perspective on events and the results created by this perspective. That is, the broader the perspective from which this angle is established, the richer the results can be. In this respect, Selim had a fixed perspective in the name of faith; in this respect, the matter was over for him. However, both the events he experienced himself and the incident he witnessed, specifically regarding his mother, may have caused Selim to re-evaluate himself. As a result, the Selim before coming to the tomb and the Selim after the tomb were no longer the same.

You also touch upon quite striking events in your story titled "Waste Facility." We won't go into the details of the story here, but why do people find it difficult to change sides politically? What are your thoughts on this?

Aydın Tonga: As you said, the story "Waste Facility" contains striking details. The most striking aspect is that this actually happened in reality. Of course, ultimately this is fiction; the characters, dialogues, and flow were produced by me. But as a result, a similar version of this story really happened. As for your question, it's a difficult question. Before political views, I think people don't want to change the cluster, group, belonging, and that identity as a whole that they are a part of. The really difficult part is here. Because on one hand, there is a spiritual investment made in that identity over the years, and on the other hand, that identity has a position and discourse against other identities over the years. Of course, the powerful effects and traces of that discourse are embedded in human memory, and they are also passed down from generation to generation. As a result, the identity dynamic shaped under the influence of culture, media, and similar social dynamics over the years does not change overnight. This story also constitutes an example of the situation we are describing. On the other hand, as I stated, there are of course other reasons for this situation that will be discussed in a broader time.

Finally, who are your favorite short story writers?

Aydın Tonga: I can write Chekhov at the very top, I think. Dostoevsky, Gogol, Kafka... Also from our own lands, Aziz Nesin, Osman Şahin, Mahmut Şevket Esendal, Sabahattin Ali, and from the recent period, Sema Kaygusuz, Behçet Çelik, Zehra Çelenk, Yalın Gündüz, and Yücel Balku, whom we lost at a young age. The list goes on.