Burhan Sönmez is the author of five novels, which have been published in more than thirty languages. He was born in Turkey and grew up speaking Turkish and Kurdish. He worked as a lawyer in Istanbul before going into political exile in Britain. Sönmez’s writing has appeared in such publications as The Guardian, Der Spiegel, Die Zeit, and La Repubblica. His previous novel, Labyrinth, was published by Other Press in 2019. He was elected President of PEN International in 2021.