Summer Book is the seemingly ordinary story of a Turkish family in a small provincial town somewhere on the Mediterranean coast. It candidly observes the family's daily routine and shows its dramatic potential in a subtle, minimalist fashion.

It is the end of the school year and ten-year-old Ali spends the last days before the holiday together with his classmates. They all receive a summer reading book to continue their study. But Ali's patriarchal father Mustafa, who is an ambitious merchant, thinks he knows what is best for his two sons. He gives Ali a box of chewing gum to be sold at a profit. The much older son Veysel comes home for a break from his studies at the military academy and confesses his desire to continue at a civilian school, infuriating his father, whose wife does what she can to calm tempers and keep the family together. But she also has a conflict with her husband, as she suspects him of having an affair. Convincing acting from the protagonists (often non-actors), warm tones and natural lighting, together with meticulous camerawork make this a splendid debut full of atmosphere.