The Trumpet Fisherman and other Istanbul Sketches

Book excerpt: "Istanbul is a network of villages woven, one might even say, thrown together, rather than a single vast city. It is a city that defies perspective, for it is constantly shifting. It is an intricate mosaic, the individual pieces of the mosaic giving meaning and substance to the whole." In his newest collection of stories, "THE TRUMPET FISHERMAN AND OTHER ISTANBUL SKETCHES," James Tressler presents an eclectic, vivid series of snapshots of contemporary Istanbul, one of the world's most vibrant and exciting cities. "The Trumpet Fisherman" tells a unique story of the old man Galip, a local eccentric who attempts to raise the fish from the sea with the sound of his trumpet. In the other stories, we follow the narrator, as well as his alter-ego, the American yabancı, through the city's elaborate streets and neighbourhoods, meeting people from all walks of life.