Ernest Hemingway – Green Hills of Africa 1955 1st Turkish Book Turkey
Ernest Hemingway – Afrika’nın Yeşil Tepeleri (Green Hills of Africa) – Varlık Yayınları First Edition (1955)
Description:
This is the 1955 first Turkish edition of Afrika’nın Yeşil Tepeleri (Green Hills of Africa), published by Varlık Yayınları in a pocket-size format, presenting Ernest Hemingway’s classic nonfiction narrative on hunting, travel, and observation in East Africa. As an early Turkish first printing, this edition is a significant collectible within Hemingway’s translated works.
Unlike Hemingway’s fictional novels, Green Hills of Africa is a literary travel memoir based on the author’s real-life safari experience in East Africa. The book blends vivid landscape descriptions, hunting expeditions, and reflective conversations about writing, literature, competition, and artistic ambition. Hemingway uses his journey not only to document African nature and wildlife but also to explore the craft of writing and the pursuit of literary excellence.
The narrative moves between observation and introspection, offering insights into both the physical challenges of big-game hunting and the intellectual challenges of being a writer. Themes of endurance, authenticity, rivalry, and artistic purpose run throughout the text, making it both a travel account and a self-reflective literary study.
This 1955 Varlık Yayınları pocket edition is especially notable due to its early publication date and compact format, typical of mid-century Turkish literary series designed for wide accessibility. What makes this copy particularly valuable for collectors is its condition: several pages remain uncut (uncirculated within the binding), a rare feature that significantly increases its desirability and preservation value.
For collectors, this edition represents a combination of early Hemingway translation history in Turkey and exceptional physical condition attributes, making it a highly sought-after item among rare Turkish literary pocket editions.
Key Features:
• Title: Afrika’nın Yeşil Tepeleri (Green Hills of Africa)
• Author: Ernest Hemingway
• Publisher: Varlık Yayınları
• Date: 1955
• Edition: First Turkish Edition
• Language: Turkish
• Format: Pocket Size Book
• Genre: Travel Literature; Memoir; Literary Nonfiction
• Setting: East Africa
• Themes: Nature; Hunting; Writing; Competition; Artistic pursuit; Reflection
• Condition: Several pages uncut (uncirculated sections)
• Significance: Early Turkish edition of Hemingway’s literary travel memoir
• Collector Appeal: First edition pocket-size copy with uncut pages, increasing rarity and value