TV presentation of Valerie Manteau’s “Agos” novel (videos in Armenian)

Fiction-autobiography, journalistic report, political criticism, romance, and biography. “Agos” is about contemporary Turkey and the assassination of Hrant Dink. Newmag published the book in Armenian. Translator Samvel Gasparyan emphasizes that besides Hrant Dink, there are also other characters in the book. “Dink is the protagonist of the book, but there are also other interesting characters. Istanbul is accurately presented in the book. The manners, the people, ethnic minorities, and their relations. The author also speaks about the Genocide. Her viewpoints are close to us, it seems that she looks at the Turks with our eyes.”  

The book translator characterizes the book as literary reporting. Maybe there is no such genre in reality, but Samvel Gasparyan claims that the book brings up new perspectives in literature and literary genres. 

Initially, Valerie Manteau visited Istanbul as a tourist, but her personal and professional interests assured her to stay in Turkey. “Everyone I met in Turkey remembered the day of Dink's assassination in full detail. Some of them confessed that they felt ashamed after that horrible incident. So I decided to write and remind people about this story. ”

Valerie Manteau is a French journalist and columnist. In 2008-2013 she worked for the popular magazine Charlie Hebdo. The editorial office of the French weekly was attacked by extremist Islamists in 2015.  “After the Charlie Hebdo incident, people were chanting - We are Charlie. They didn’t even realize what it meant. Similarly, there were huge protests after Dink’s assassination, People were chanting - We are Armenians.” 

 French Embassy in Armenia and Newmag Publishing House have presented Valerie Manteau’s “Agos” novel. The author of the book comprehensively explored the life of Hrant Dink, a person, who was a symbol of freedom and peace in Turkey.