"World Books Review: American Writers in Istanbul
By World Books ⋅ December 27, 2009
This study of American writers in Istanbul should have been a fascinating example of multicultural literary analysis, but academic jargon and heavy-handed politicizing get in the way.
American Writers in Istanbul: Melville, Twain, Hemingway, Dos Passos, Bowles, Algren, and Baldwin by Kim Fortuny. Syracuse University Press, 238 pages. $34.95.
Reviewed by Vincent Czyz
Ostensibly, the purpose of “American Writers in Istanbul,” as stated in the foreword, is to examine “both the ways in which each author reacts to the great city and the placement of their writings about Istanbul … within their total oeuvre.” Which authors you ask? Literary legends such as Herman Melville, Mark Twain, Ernst Hemingway, John Dos Passos, and James Baldwin. As an avid reader, a writer, and a former inhabitant of Istanbul (for nearly nine years), I was determined to like, laud, and recommend this book. It is with genuine regret that I have to do just the opposite."
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