İTLF - İstanbul Tanpınar Litarute Festival 2012

Bibi Dumon Tak (1964) studied Dutch Literature. In 2001, she made her debut as a non-fiction author for children with The Cow Book (2001). Although Dumon Tak’s oeuvre consists for the main part of factual titles, the line between fiction and non-fiction appears to blur in her work; she uses literary techniques to describe reality.Her first novel based on a true story was Private Voytek. This style is now attracting a certain amount of cautious imitation, but it was immediately acknowledged by the critics: The Cow Book was awarded the Silver Slate Pencil, as was the later Camera runs… action!. Bibi Dumon Tak has received wide praise as the author who lifted the non-fiction genre for children to a higher level: Her books are not merely informative, but also literary gems.

Translation in Turkish

Dumon Tak, Bibi, [Kir kurdu kitap kurdu], translation Şansal Livatyalı, Istanbul, Iletisim, 2010.