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Istanbul: The Collected Traveler: An Inspired Companion Guide
THE COLLECTED TRAVELER
For Travelers Who Want More Than a Guidebook
Bringing The Collected Traveler along on your trip is like having your own savvy personal tour guide who knows the place intimately. This unique guide to one of today's hottest tourist destinations combines fascinating articles by a wide variety of writers, woven throughout with the editor's own indispensable advice and opinions-providing in one package an unparalleled experience of an extraordinary place.
THIS EDITION ON ISTANBUL
• Seductive, colorful, and in-depth articles that illuminate the dazzling treasures and monuments of Istanbul, from the Grand Bazaar to the Sultans' palaces; the delights of Turkish cuisine; the rich pageant of Istanbul's history; and the people and personalities that define it today.
• More personal pieces that take the reader beyond the usual tourist highlights, offering intimate reports on everything from the heavenly scent (and taste) of Turkish roses to the glitzy nightlife of this city of “minarets and miniskirts” to the unusual pleasure of being pummeled to within an inch of your life in an historic Turkish bath.
• Enticing recommendations for related reading, including novels, histories, memoirs, and the most useful guidebooks.
• An A-Z Miscellany of concise and entertaining information to arm you for your trip-on everything from Alexander the Great and Ataturk to Whirling Dervishes and Turkish Wine.
• Interviews, Q & As, and commentary from visitors and residents, ranging from the 18th-century society wit Lady Mary Wortley Montague to Nobel Prize-winner Orhan Pamuk.
• Spotlights on unusual shops, restaurants, hotels, and experiences not to be missed.
For Travelers Who Want More Than a Guidebook
Bringing The Collected Traveler along on your trip is like having your own savvy personal tour guide who knows the place intimately. This unique guide to one of today's hottest tourist destinations combines fascinating articles by a wide variety of writers, woven throughout with the editor's own indispensable advice and opinions-providing in one package an unparalleled experience of an extraordinary place.
THIS EDITION ON ISTANBUL
• Seductive, colorful, and in-depth articles that illuminate the dazzling treasures and monuments of Istanbul, from the Grand Bazaar to the Sultans' palaces; the delights of Turkish cuisine; the rich pageant of Istanbul's history; and the people and personalities that define it today.
• More personal pieces that take the reader beyond the usual tourist highlights, offering intimate reports on everything from the heavenly scent (and taste) of Turkish roses to the glitzy nightlife of this city of “minarets and miniskirts” to the unusual pleasure of being pummeled to within an inch of your life in an historic Turkish bath.
• Enticing recommendations for related reading, including novels, histories, memoirs, and the most useful guidebooks.
• An A-Z Miscellany of concise and entertaining information to arm you for your trip-on everything from Alexander the Great and Ataturk to Whirling Dervishes and Turkish Wine.
• Interviews, Q & As, and commentary from visitors and residents, ranging from the 18th-century society wit Lady Mary Wortley Montague to Nobel Prize-winner Orhan Pamuk.
• Spotlights on unusual shops, restaurants, hotels, and experiences not to be missed.
624 pages, Paperback
First published August 11, 2009
12 people are currently reading
124 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 5, 2025
A collection of essays, magazine articles and book excerpts relating to the history, architecture, food and culture of Istanbul curated by Barrie Kerper, traveler extraordinaire. I really enjoyed the lengthy “recommended reading” at the end of each chapter. Unfortunately, no time to follow through much on the reading but my favorite pieces were by John Freely and his daughter, Maureen Freely, so especially hope to read more by both of them.
Book was published in 2009; pieces of it were first published as early as the 1960s so not sure that this is very helpful as a travel guide but it is informative, good at providing historic and cultural background.
Liked the small black and white photographs sprinkled throughout but would also like maps and an index. 3.5
Book was published in 2009; pieces of it were first published as early as the 1960s so not sure that this is very helpful as a travel guide but it is informative, good at providing historic and cultural background.
Liked the small black and white photographs sprinkled throughout but would also like maps and an index. 3.5
February 5, 2020
This is more of an anthology of resources than a travel guide. To me, a companion book would be a Lonely Planet Guide, which helps you to chart out your course on the tourist path, but this book, and its 500+ pages will help any foreigner get acquainted with Turkey's history, culture, and different regions. I really liked the sections about food and history. (NB. This book will tell you everything about everything, so I skipped through many pages; it reads more like an encyclopedia than travel guide).
July 15, 2013
Certainly a step better than Kerper's book in the same series on Paris, possibly because I knew less of Istanbul but I feel honestly also because the editor (Kerper) picked a better selection of contributions for this anthology. The concept behind these books—and it is a very good one—is that the editor puts together a collection of essays, book introductions, interviews, and other short works on the city in question and groups these in chapters by topic, such as museums or people of the city or foodways. The Istanbul book is pretty good—very good in places—but still suffers somewhat from the problem that made me rather dislike the Paris book: it presumes too little of the reader and stays close to expected and often trite routes and topics. The way Kerper interviews people is also an issue again here: she seems to bask in her adoration of those she interviews and asks them more about themselves than what they can say about Istanbul. Almost every interview in both this and the Paris book says something akin to "wow! You've lived here so very long, yet come from somewhere else! How exciting! And don't you have a new book coming out?". I don't need a paper-Oprah to introduce these writers, professors, and tour guides to me: I want to learn more about Istanbul.
November 9, 2012
This collection of individual narratives on the history and culture of Istanbul is well-curated. The pieces are colorful and in-depth and provide a colorful tapestry of the personalities, events, architecture, food, literature, sights, sounds and smells of the city. I look forward to reading texts listed in the mini-bibliography found after each article. This book will be enjoyed by any lover of Byzantium, Ottoman, Turkish history and culture, and it would be an invaluable pre-trip read before a trip to Istanbul.
June 18, 2012
Finished just in time for my trip! This was an excellent collection of essays and practical travel information - a really in depth look into the history of Istanbul and daily life. The author clearly loves Istanbul and has gathered expert advice for travelers ranging from places to visit, food to try, stores to shop in, mixed with recipes, interviews and background information.
August 1, 2013
When I was planning to suddenly go to Turkey, I wanted to get a guide book on it. I did a search on it and came across this book. This wasn’t a guide book (by which time, I had already lost interesting in finding an actual guide book), it was a book full of articles about Istanbul, from various sources, on various topics related to Istanbul, published in different times. I thought, this seems more fun!
And in a way, it was better than a guide book, and in some ways, not really. The biggest problem is the author herself is one of those annoying, obnoxious white people that are so impressed with different countries that she makes it sound annoying. Everything about Istanbul is assfucking good, according to her. This is a problem with most people nowadays writing about countries they write about. They write as if their travel abroad is a long, continuous orgasm. She uses a statement like, “But as with other aspects of travel, there are good guides and then there are superb guides.” No, you bitch, there are shit guides and bored guides and expensive guides and then there are reasonable, not terrible guides for morons.
Some of the articles she chose are good and interesting to read. Some articles are shit. Others mediocre, so it’s pretty much hit and miss.
The book is full of recommended reading material, so here are some random stuff, I highlighted to read in some distance future,
Books by John Freely
Evliya Efendi?
A Hedonist’s Guide to Istanbul
Pamuk
Baudier
The Bastard of Istanbul
And this phrase, “In response to seeing what he described as a “gloomy” Turk, British traveler Marmaduke Pickthall commented, “I think it is that you are trying to be something which you never can be, something which nobody with any sense would wish to be---a European.”
And in a way, it was better than a guide book, and in some ways, not really. The biggest problem is the author herself is one of those annoying, obnoxious white people that are so impressed with different countries that she makes it sound annoying. Everything about Istanbul is assfucking good, according to her. This is a problem with most people nowadays writing about countries they write about. They write as if their travel abroad is a long, continuous orgasm. She uses a statement like, “But as with other aspects of travel, there are good guides and then there are superb guides.” No, you bitch, there are shit guides and bored guides and expensive guides and then there are reasonable, not terrible guides for morons.
Some of the articles she chose are good and interesting to read. Some articles are shit. Others mediocre, so it’s pretty much hit and miss.
The book is full of recommended reading material, so here are some random stuff, I highlighted to read in some distance future,
Books by John Freely
Evliya Efendi?
A Hedonist’s Guide to Istanbul
Pamuk
Baudier
The Bastard of Istanbul
And this phrase, “In response to seeing what he described as a “gloomy” Turk, British traveler Marmaduke Pickthall commented, “I think it is that you are trying to be something which you never can be, something which nobody with any sense would wish to be---a European.”
March 7, 2013
An insightful collection of essays ranging from the history (nearly the first half of the book) of Turkey to the culinary and bits on modern social life.
The organization of the book allows you to skip a bit without missing any preliminary context. The travel-practical sections are ones dedicated to food and exploration, such as visiting mosques (including the lesser frequented) and Turkish baths (one essay by a single person's perspective). There's even a bit on public toilets -- a subject that many travel guides often lack to mention and prepare a traveler for. I found this both amusing and informative.
For the curious and voracious reader, each section comes with the editor's list of recommended titles for additional reading. One of my favorite feature to the book.
What I found limiting is that there is a limited focus on the heart of the arts and entertainment culture. A few mentions like Istanbul Modern Museum and chic bars (if this is your thing) doesn't whet my appetite. But, I didn't expect a perfect well rounded coverage in a single anthology by a single person.
As to any resource book, some of the sources may feel outdated or no longer relevant by the time you read it. (Book was published in 2009.)
Like the title of the book states, it's a companion to either an additional travel guide or your personal research of your journey. I encourage everyone to use this book loosely as your base, especially as a second (or third) perspective of Istanbul.
The organization of the book allows you to skip a bit without missing any preliminary context. The travel-practical sections are ones dedicated to food and exploration, such as visiting mosques (including the lesser frequented) and Turkish baths (one essay by a single person's perspective). There's even a bit on public toilets -- a subject that many travel guides often lack to mention and prepare a traveler for. I found this both amusing and informative.
For the curious and voracious reader, each section comes with the editor's list of recommended titles for additional reading. One of my favorite feature to the book.
What I found limiting is that there is a limited focus on the heart of the arts and entertainment culture. A few mentions like Istanbul Modern Museum and chic bars (if this is your thing) doesn't whet my appetite. But, I didn't expect a perfect well rounded coverage in a single anthology by a single person.
As to any resource book, some of the sources may feel outdated or no longer relevant by the time you read it. (Book was published in 2009.)
Like the title of the book states, it's a companion to either an additional travel guide or your personal research of your journey. I encourage everyone to use this book loosely as your base, especially as a second (or third) perspective of Istanbul.
July 15, 2013
A collection of essays and articles that Kerper compiled and to which she added her own narratives and insight.
I wish there was a book like this that existing for every travel destination I've been to and will visit in the future. This provides incredible color to the rich history of Turkey (with a special focus on Istanbul and the important historical sites in Istanbul), as well as chapters on modern culture, food, and travel tips. After reading this book, I felt much more prepared to tackle Istanbul and its historical sites, and it provided a much more full picture on many of the historical sites we saw than our tour guide did.
I will be purchasing The Collected Traveler for any future areas I visit about which Kerper has prepared a volume.
I wish there was a book like this that existing for every travel destination I've been to and will visit in the future. This provides incredible color to the rich history of Turkey (with a special focus on Istanbul and the important historical sites in Istanbul), as well as chapters on modern culture, food, and travel tips. After reading this book, I felt much more prepared to tackle Istanbul and its historical sites, and it provided a much more full picture on many of the historical sites we saw than our tour guide did.
I will be purchasing The Collected Traveler for any future areas I visit about which Kerper has prepared a volume.
September 17, 2014
There are no words for how much I enjoyed this collection of essays. I picked it up in a bookstore in Istanbul on the second day of my honeymoon, and I'm so glad I did. Although it was 700 pages, I carried it everywhere for the next two weeks. Really thoughtful compilation of essays related to Turkey (particularly Istanbul), including food, people, history, architecture...everything. Rather than concerning herself with super-current selections, Ms. Kerper simply chose the most thoughtful, well-written essays on a given topic. The result is a really layered look at Turkey. I'm considering planning future travel only for countries Ms. Kerper has written about. Maybe that's extreme? I loved this book.
February 9, 2011
This is my favorite travel series, and this one is especially good.
Barrie Kerper has presented a collection of essays, book excerpts and articles from the her collections on Istanbul. Each chapter is followed by a list of suggested reading with a brief description of each.
A great read in and of itself, plus an incredibly valuable resource for ongoing inquiry.
I skimmed the book before the trip, but it is so rich with detail that I'm looking forward to going back again to reread some sections specific to my experiences in Istanbul and Turkey now that I have a context to hang them in.
Barrie Kerper has presented a collection of essays, book excerpts and articles from the her collections on Istanbul. Each chapter is followed by a list of suggested reading with a brief description of each.
A great read in and of itself, plus an incredibly valuable resource for ongoing inquiry.
I skimmed the book before the trip, but it is so rich with detail that I'm looking forward to going back again to reread some sections specific to my experiences in Istanbul and Turkey now that I have a context to hang them in.
October 29, 2012
Stellar selection of short pieces on Istanbul and Turkey, with a treasure trove of leads for travelers or would-be travelers interested in one of the world's most remarkable cities. If you're planning a trip to Istanbul, this book will whet your appetite, help you decide what you want to see and do, and point you toward some other great resources.
Two complaints - there are astonishilngly, no maps (unforgivable), and the illustrations seem to be nearly randomly attached to various pages and have no captions. Just a bit more thought & effort on presentation would have made a huge difference to the reader's enjoyment.
Two complaints - there are astonishilngly, no maps (unforgivable), and the illustrations seem to be nearly randomly attached to various pages and have no captions. Just a bit more thought & effort on presentation would have made a huge difference to the reader's enjoyment.
April 29, 2011
This collection of essays gives you a wonderful feel for Istanbul. It's something to read before you go, then revisit when you're there, since it's not a guidebook that is broken out by food, museums, etc., or by district. It's a smattering of impressions of a beautiful city--a little bit of history, a little bit of culture--that will help you appreciate the city when you're there.
July 12, 2013
From all the many books about Istanbul, Turkey and Ottoman Empire I have been reading as part of the preparation of my forthcoming month wandering in Turkey and Istanbul, this was probably the most interesting so far. A great selection of texts. Of course, some more interesting than others, to my personal case, but nevertheless a great reading. I am very happy I picked this book.
September 25, 2013
The first half was great - articles about history, culture, and sites was great. PErfect companion for pre-arrival in the city. When it gets to the restaurant/nightlife section, it becomes almost absurdly bougie. Still useful, but I'm here on a budget. I liked it for the most part though - just wish there was more for the budget-conscious.
January 14, 2017
I have read at least a dozen books on Istanbul in the lead up to a trip there later this year; this collection is a delightful companion which both provides useful information and the 'flavour and feel' of the city. It has also provided some wonderful leads on further reading. It also has a longish section on food. I'd recommend it to anyone visiting Istanbul.
February 13, 2016
This was a wonderful book. I only wish that I had started reading it earlier than I did in preparation for my trip to Turkey. There is a wealth of information here and I am looking forward to reading it again now that I am back from my trip.
March 10, 2011
Maybe the best travel book I have ever read? Read it before going to İstanbul, and then read her other recommendations. (As an aside, I prefer Galata to Sultanahmet, but make sure you get to the Asian side and eat at least one meal at Çiya.)
April 5, 2013
Probably the best guide book I've ever read. A collection of articles on everything from food to architecture, from history to sightseeing. Everything you need to know to get a feeling for this wonderful city.
December 2, 2013
Of the four books I've read so far, this is by far the best preparation for a trip to Turkey. The writers are all excellent and the editor, Kerper, seems very knowledgeable. I am about halfway and savoring every bite.
Finished and loved every bite!
Finished and loved every bite!
September 6, 2013
This is an anthology of articles concerning Turkey keyed to the reader who is about to travel there. As someone who knew little about Turkey before reading this book, I found it very informative and exactly what I needed before departing on my trip.
July 5, 2011
A great book about books about Turkey.
December 29, 2011
Interesting collection of essays, articles and interviews and many, many book recommendations) by a range of authors. Useful to read before my trip to Istanbul to get a flavour of the city.
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March 15, 2013Very academic and full of excerpts that I didn't particularly understand. Perhaps with more context it would make sense later. We'll see!
July 25, 2012
An invaluable resource during my trip to Turkey. I highly recommend this series to any traveler.
March 8, 2013
The wonderful descriptions and recommendations made me want to go for trip #3!
January 29, 2016
Fabulous book---history, sight seeing, food. . . so much to absorb and remember.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews