Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9253 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-06
• Binding: Paperback
• 350 pages

Synopsis
Turkey's greatest living novelist guides us through the monuments and lost paradises, dilapidated Ottoman villas, back streets and waterways of Istanbul - the city of his birth and the home of his imagination. This is a supremely moving account of one man's love affair with the city that has been his home since his birth.

Customer Reviews

Lovely Book
An unusual and insightful guide to what remains for many a mysterious city. At the same time, a personal memoir that is wry, moving, and original. I feel as though I now have a good friend to whisper in my ear as I navigate the streets of Istanbul, no longer clueless.

An original insight into Istanbul
Having spent much time in Istanbul and being a fan of the city, I wasn't sure what to expect from this book initially. However, I found the author's insight into the city intriguing and enticing. His poetic style of writing, as he parallels the story of his family's misfortunes to the misfortunes of Istanbul, brings the reader to delight in the melancholic beauty of this city.

Whilst his understanding of Istanbul is sometimes too reliant on his own experiences for the reader to fully appreciate, his style of writing nevertheless allows you to enjoy this as a great alternative guide to the city.

Penetrating, insightful and a little gloomy
I didn't quite know what to expect of Istanbul, having read all of the author's fiction. I suspected it might be a little strange, and rather melancholic. Pamuk's study of his home town turned out to be a non-linear, dip-into read. It is engrossing and lyrical and a great testament to Pamuk's writing that it doesn't come across as self-obsessed or egomaniacal as Pamuk is clearly fascinated by his family/family legacy. In a more self-indulgent writer this could be rather irksome, but in Pamuk's (and translator Maureen Freely's) hands it becomes seductive and soothing. I spent time in Istanbul in the late 80s and I never really got the hang of the city, didn't understand how/why it worked. I wish this book had been around then as I would approach the place completely differently.