The Book of Dede Korkut tells the stories of Bayindir Khan, leader of the Oghuz Turks, and his circle of lords and ladies as they battle enemies, free captives, and fall in love. The Oghuz were a federation of Turkic tribes who would become the ancestors of the modern Turks, as well as other Turkic peoples (such as the Azeri and the Turkmen who settled in the regions of Azerbaijan, Northern Iran, Iraq, and Turkmenistan). The Book of Dede Korkut differs from a typical epic and in some ways defies classification. Instead of following the adventures of one hero or one family though a number of different trials, the episodes each focus on one of several different families of the Oghuz nobility, giving the work a collective (rather than an individual) hero. In addition, the narrative uses a combined form...