At a time when Turkey is struggling for its secular identity, resisting the influence of ISIS, and finding itself at the heart of the European refugee crisis, accomplished Turkish playwright Özen Yula offers a deep, artistic portrait of the country and its culture. Yula, whose work focuses on marginalized individuals within oppressive social systems, has a lot to say about the problems facing global democracies—issues like failures in the social contract, human rights conflicts, territorial security, religious strife, and nationalism.

Unofficial Roxelana is a collection of Yula’s most significant work. It illustrates how problematic power structures emerge regardless of different governmental configurations, always resulting in the repression of marginalized members of society—in this case, from renowned Turkish historical figures, like Roxelana and Rumi, to the pariahs of modern Turkey. With a contextualizing introduction by Marvin Carlson and a lengthy interview with Yula, this first-of-its-kind anthology is an invaluable glimpse into the tempestuous and deeply artistic modern Turkey.