Turkish millennials seek their own literary heroes
Millennials and post-millennials read differently than their elders, as they are faster in skimming, better in sharing and interested in interactive literary works.
They skim texts faster, love sharing punchlines and prefer interactive literary works. Although some Turkish millennials say they have no time to read, others claim to have a wide interest that stretches from Turkish classics to new-generation idols, such as Emrah Serbes and Murat Mentes.
“Young readers are interested in popular science, personal development books, aphorism collections, action, love stories, science fiction novels and poetry,” Nazli Berivan Ak, an author and editor at April Publishers, told Al-Monitor. Ak said that millennials and post-millennials attend book fairs, authors’ readings and book-signing sessions. “They also follow interactive literature quite closely,” she added, referring to April’s book series called “Perfect Mistakes,” which has been on the bestseller list ever since its launch in 2011. The first book of the series was Heather McElhatton’s “Pretty Little Mistakes,” described as an “interactive hyper fiction” where the reader can direct where the story will go and finish off with one of the 150 possible endings.
“In this series, readers get to choose their own adventure and reach different conclusions based on their choices. Young readers in Turkey love being part of the story,” she said.
She emphasized that sometimes an old classic becomes popular in the new generation. For example, “Madonna in a Fur Coat,” by Sabahattin Ali and published in 1943, has gained unexpected fame after 2009. Since then it has been on the bestseller list.
