Woman writes book after becoming literate at age of 70

ISTANBUL

A mother of nine who learnt how to read and write at the age of 70 has penned a book in a year depicting all her life experiences.

“I had a very hard life. I want people to read my book and learn from the lessons I learned,” 71-year-old Ayşe Başoğlu told state-run Anadolu Agency.

Başoğlu, who never went to school because her grandfather did not want her to go to school, was forced into marriage at the age of 20.

She gave birth to nine children and got divorced from her husband at the age of 37.

“The conditions to live in Istanbul was hard, but I raised all my nine kids while working at a cafeteria to stay afloat,” she said.

But her will to get educated never ceased. She began attending the free courses given to people like her at the Tuzla Municipality of Istanbul last year.

“I learned how to read and write in daily one-hour lessons. I, then, understood how ignorant I had spent my life,” she said.

The start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey in March 2020 inspired her to write her life experiences in a notebook while she spent most time confined in her house.

In a year, Başoğlu filled the notebook with memories and showed the book to Tuzla Mayor Şadi Yazıcı.

“She had a dream and we supported her. Now we will publish her book of memories. We will show with this book that learning has no age,” Yazıcı said.

“I want my book to be a source of motivation for the younger generations,” Başoğlu said.