Reading Maps Project Brings Routes of Literary Works to Real Maps

Founded by Aires Loutsaris, the Reading Maps project brings events and character routes in literary works onto real maps, featuring 1,435 books and films on the site.

Routes of Cult Works from World Literature

The map features many cult works of world literature. In Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment", the route extends from Raskolnikov's cramped room in St. Petersburg to the Haymarket, and then to Omsk in Siberia. Tolstoy's "War and Peace" follows Napoleon's 1812 Russian campaign: from the Niemen to Vilna, Vitebsk, Smolensk, and Borodino, and on the return from burning Moscow, reaching Smolensk, Berezina, and the Niemen once again. In Cervantes' "Don Quixote", the route extends from the village in La Mancha to the windmills, Sierra Morena, and El Toboso, while the journey passes through Barcelona and returns to the village. Dickens' "Great Expectations" begins in the churchyard and extends to Joe's forge, Miss Havisham's Satis House, Barnard's Inn and Hammersmith in London, with Pip's final stop being Cairo.

Ancient Epics and Works from Turkey

Ancient epics also find a place on the map. Homer's "Iliad" reaches Troy by crossing the Aegean from Sparta, Mycenae, and Aulis. Reading Maps thus connects the Trojan War with the actual geography on the Anatolian coast. "The Odyssey", on the other hand, extends from Troy through the Thracian coast, Djerba, Sicily, Sardinia, the Italian coast, Gozo, and Corfu to Ithaca. From Turkey, Sabahattin Ali's "Madonna in a Fur Coat" is featured between Havran, Berlin, and Ankara; Orhan Pamuk's "The Black Book" along the Nişantaşı, Şişli, Beyoğlu, Galata, Bosphorus line; and "My Name Is Red" on the route of Venice, Istanbul, Tabriz, and Istanbul once again.