A collection of short stories written by Nihan Kaya in her early youth, The Attic received the 2004 Turkish Writers’ Association Award. With an extensive and striking preface by the author, this edition brings a new dimension to the stories.

These are tales of compassion—stories about children and childhood—guided by the principle that “Compassion is the understanding of pain.” According to Nihan Kaya, who states that “The most invisible pain in this world is the pain a child endures,” the purpose of literature is to make the unseen suffering visible.

October 2004