"These are small scenes and portraits extracted from history. The models are real... The events occurred just as I wrote them." — Reşad Ekrem Koçu

In İstanbul Stories (İstanbul Hikâyeleri), Reşad Ekrem Koçu presents a kaleidoscope of colorful human stories that define the soul of the city. He writes not like a photographer, but like a painter using words as his brush. The cast of characters is vast and vibrant: sultans, princes, firemen (tulumbacılar), sycophants, witches, dancers (köçeks), and executioners.

Moving from the grandeur of palaces to the grit of dive bars, coffeehouses, and taverns, these stories explore the ever-present themes of love, brawls, and prohibitions. Enhanced by illustrations from Eda Çağıl Çağlarırmak, this collection serves as both a literary treasure and a sociological study of Ottoman Istanbul.