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The two authors of The Immortal Atatürk: A Psychobiography, Vamik Volkan and Norman Itzkowitz, have, with skill and dedication, pieced together an enormous amount of data in order to provide the reader with a comprehensive and coherent account of Kemal Atatürk's life and creativity. Their work represents a truly scholarly enterprise that combines a wealth of factual information with a coherent and systematic interpretation of the data available.
The complex material about the life of this well-known Turkish leader, who with all justification is referred to as the father of modern Turkey, pertains to Atatürk's autobiographical writings, his speeches, and the writing and memories of several historians and other people who were closely associated with him. In addition, the authors of this biography conducted several personal interviews with a number of informers who had direct knowledge of their subject. The basic psychological theme around which all this information is organized pertains to what the authors define as Kemal Atatürk's 'narcissistic personality organization', a conclusion to which the authors came early during their investigations (page xxiii) and to which they make continuous references in every chapter of the book.
Volkan & Itzkowitz are well aware of the input of their own humanity into their work. In their introduction they inform the reader of their background and experiences. Dr Volkan is of Turkish descent, born and raised on the island of Cyprus, having idealized Azatürk from an early age. The authors' candour has a reassuring effect on the psychologically sophisticated reader, because it provides evidence of the authors' self-awareness, a quality quite essential for the accomplishment of their biographical task. Every biography is, to an extent, an autobiography. The retrospective pilgrimage into the life of a prominent leader and reformer who has profoundly affected the life of the investigator and his sense of self-esteem is bound to be