What secrets are whispered in the shadows of an Istanbul prison, where the innocent and the guilty are equally trapped by the absurdity of power?

In The Damned Yard (Prokleta avlija), Nobel laureate Ivo Andrić constructs a masterful psychological novella set within the stifling walls of a notorious Ottoman detention center. The story focuses on Ćamil, a wealthy and intellectual young man from Smyrna, whose obsession with the tragic history of Cem Sultan—the ill-fated brother of Sultan Bayezid II—leads to his own imprisonment. Isolated and fragile, Ćamil begins to blur the lines between his own life and that of the historical prince, believing he shares the same doomed destiny.

Through the eyes of Fra Petar, a Bosnian Franciscan monk also held in the "Yard," the narrative unfolds as a series of concentric circles. We meet a vivid cast of characters, including the prison's governor, Karađoz—a spidery, authoritarian figure who rules through manipulation and fear, toying with his prisoners in a grotesque game of cat and mouse.

Written with clarity and deep symbolic resonance, the novel explores the fragility of identity and the crushing weight of totalitarian authority. It stands as a profound parable about the human condition, where storytelling becomes the only escape from the "damned yard" of existence.

Though concise, this 1954 masterpiece is one of Andrić’s most intense and moving works, capturing the horror, despair, and dark humor of life under the shadow of the State.