We learn about the various crimes of the prisoners and we also learn of Latif Aga, known as Karadjos, the Chief Warder. Fortunately Brother Petar is in ordinary clothes so is not recognised as a Christian. There are all types there, from hardened criminals to the (relatively) innocent. The Istanbul police put anyone there they want to investigate, innocent or guilty, on the assumption it is easier to get them if they are guilty. The name Damned Yard was the name given to the prison by the people – we never know its real name. He was kept in the prison, awaiting a hearing. As the bearer of the letter had escaped, they arrested Brother Petar as it was felt Bosnia was near Albania and he was a Christian. While he was there, the Istanbul priest had come across a letter addressed to the Austrian internuncio in Istanbul, complaining of the persecution of Christians in Albania. He has been sent there, with Brother Tadija, as he could write good Turkish. Brother Petar has just died but, before his death, had told of his stay in Istanbul. The novel is about the stay of Brother Petar, a Bosnian monk, in an Istanbul prison. The 1992 translation, The Damned Yard, is the accurate translation. This is a fairly minor work in Andrić’s oeuvre but still enjoyable. Home » Bosnia » Ivo Andrić » Prokleta avlija (Devil’s Yard The Damned Yard) Ivo Andrić: Prokleta avlija (Devil’s Yard The Damned Yard)
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