Reading list for Greece and Turkey
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Reading list for Greece and Turkey
I love to read as much (or more) as I like to plan for my trips. I have found that reading about a destination enriches the experience tremendously. Our next trip will be to Greece and/or Turkey and I'm wondering if anyone has book recommendations. Fiction, Historical Fiction, Non-fiction...everything is welcome!
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Marigross, I am sure that you will get many replies. Most trips with Smithsonian Journeys include extensive reading suggestions. For starters:
GREECE
http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/d.../r/SI/mcms.htm
TURKEY
http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/d.../r/SI/mcms.htm
GREECE
http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/d.../r/SI/mcms.htm
TURKEY
http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/d.../r/SI/mcms.htm
#3
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Greece - "Cambridge Press Illustrated History of Ancient Greece". Fascinating book which explains in interesting detail the complexities of Ancient Greece including the lives of the average citizen. Greatly increased our understanding and appreciation of not just the ancient sites but modern Greece as well.
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I second Birds Without Wings by Louis de Bernieres, a beautifully written book about Turkey.
Also "Istanbul" and "My Name is Red" by Orhan Pamuk. There is a good bit of the history in guide books on Turkey, including Fodors.
Also "Istanbul" and "My Name is Red" by Orhan Pamuk. There is a good bit of the history in guide books on Turkey, including Fodors.
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marigross, PM me with an e-mail address and I can send you my complete booklist, that I provide to my travel companions ... I've done 8 Greece trips since 1999, most of them taking along newcomers to Greece, so I've developed a list of what I like best -- but I don't want to keyboard the whole thing here.
#10
For Turkey, check books by:
John Freely, for antique sites
Maureen Freely, Fiction (Jonh's daughter and nobelist Orhan Pamuk's translator)
Barbara Nadel, Mystery
Yasar Kemal, fiction, rural life and customs
Nazim kemal, poetry
Elif Safak, fiction
Ayse Kulin, biographical/historical fiction
Orhan Veli, poetry
Talat Halman, essays, translations
the documentary DVD by Fatih Akin, "Crossing the Bridge"
John Freely, for antique sites
Maureen Freely, Fiction (Jonh's daughter and nobelist Orhan Pamuk's translator)
Barbara Nadel, Mystery
Yasar Kemal, fiction, rural life and customs
Nazim kemal, poetry
Elif Safak, fiction
Ayse Kulin, biographical/historical fiction
Orhan Veli, poetry
Talat Halman, essays, translations
the documentary DVD by Fatih Akin, "Crossing the Bridge"
#13
Thomas Cahill, Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea: Why the Greeks Matter
Sofka Zinovieff, Euridice Street: A Place in Athens
Cathy Gere, The Tomb of Agamemnon (if you are going to Mycenae)
And not a book recommendation, although it might be almost as long, you might be interested in my trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm
Sofka Zinovieff, Euridice Street: A Place in Athens
Cathy Gere, The Tomb of Agamemnon (if you are going to Mycenae)
And not a book recommendation, although it might be almost as long, you might be interested in my trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm
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