Floris Books title; My Name is Samin, illustrated by Zeynep Ozatalay, a new tale about refugees.

We’re very pleased to share this impressive debut novel written by Fidan Meikle, My Name is Samin. The cover is illustrated by Zeynep Ozatalay, and published by Floris Books in their Kelpies range. It’s suitable for the upper middle grade audience of about 11 or 12 upwards.

Here’s a synopsis of the book…

Fidan Meikle, an Azerbaijani-British writer, linguist and translator. Meikle tells the story of a thirteen-year-old boy from Afghanistan who is fleeing his home after the death of his parents in the hope of finding safety. This remarkable and deeply moving story conveys the reality of the experience of refugees and provides the reader with the opportunity to learn, to understand and to empathise.

They are also currently working together on the sequel, so we can't wait to share more news here.

Zeynep Özatalay was born and raised in İstanbul, Turkey, but now resides in a coastal town by the Aegean Sea. The layered history and nature of this region have a significant influence on her.. She has a BA in graphic design. She has always used illustration as a way of expressing ideas and feelings, and she's very much inspired by nature.

She enjoys creating both editorial illustrations and children's books, and tries to further develop her style with every new artboard. She usually prefers creating digital art, but sometimes works with traditional media on her personal projects. Zeynep has been following human rights cases in her country, Turkey, for a long time and working as a volunteer court illustrator. She has also had collaborations with NGOs that help children and refugees. To date, she has worked on various projects with various institutions such as Amnesty and the Turkish Medical Association. Zeynep would love to work with vegan brands! It can be food, fashion or cosmetics.

You can buy this book here

If you’d like more info, please contact: [email protected]

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