Product Description: A shimmering evocation, by turns intimate and panoramic, of one of the world’s great cities, by its foremost writer. Orhan Pamuk was born in Istanbul and still lives in the family apartment building where his mother first held him in her arms. His portrait of his city is thus also a self-portrait, refracted by memory and the melancholy–or hüzün– that all Istanbullus share: the sadness that comes of living amid the ruins of a lost empire.
With cinematic fluidity, Pamuk moves from his glamorous, unhappy parents to the gorgeous, decrepit mansions overlooking the Bosphorus; from the dawning of his self-consciousness to the writers and painters–both Turkish and foreign–who would shape his consciousness of his city. Like Joyce’s Dublin and Borges’ Buenos Aires, Pamuk’s Istanbul is a triumphant encounter of place and sensibility, beautifully written and immensely moving.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - For those who glory in rainy days
Yes, it got the Nobel Prize, and who am I to argue with that. But the book just didn't work for me. I had rather hoped for a slightly more objective glimpse of Istanbul from the eyes of someone who grew ... Read More
Rating: - After visiting Istambul
I have started to enyoy this masterpiece, since I visited Istambul. Suddenly Pamuk's memories has merged with mine.
Rating: - Excellent introduction to Turkish history and culture
Istanbul: Memories and the City
Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk's Istanbul, like Samuel Peyps' London, Proust's Paris, and Borges' Buenos Aires, is a collection of childhood memories informed ... Read More
Rating: - neo-nostalgia
I remember the Boston of my childhood, though I remember Marblehead (a small town to the north) much better because I actually lived there. The two places had certain sights, sounds, smells, and "feelings" ... Read More
Rating: - Istanbul: Memories and the City
I have now read all of Orhan Pamuk books available. I have learned so much about another culture because of this brillian author.
- For those who glory in rainy days
- After visiting Istambul