The past two years have been ones of ups and downs for the Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk.

Late in 2005, he was tried in his native Istanbul for "insulting Turkish identity" and was pelted with eggs outside the courtroom. The charges were later dropped.

Then, on Dec. 10 of last year, Pamuk received the Nobel Prize for literature. The aftermath of both events have turned the 57-year-old writer's life "hectic, busy. I can't wait to return to my room with the view of the harbor and write all day long."

Pamuk announced his intentions over the din of midtown Manhattan traffic Friday as he began a reading tour of the United States for his latest book, "Other Colors: Essays and a Story," a collection of nonfiction covering more than 20 years.

He stops here tonight at 7:30 p.m. for a reading at the Drue Heinz Lectures in Oakland. He said the prize has had little effect on the attitude of Turkish authorities but has earned him more attention worldwide.

"My life is now more hectic, more busy, but it did not change my character. The prize made me happy and made me want to work harder."

Pamuk was skeptical of remarks by Turkey's President Abdullah Gul last week that he wants to change provisions of Article 301, the law that brought the writer to trial.

"They say this all the time, that they want to make changes to Article 301, but nothing happens," said Pamuk. "It's simply an authoritarian situation in Turkey right now. Don't ask me about the rationality of the penal code."

The author of five novels and a commentary about his town, "Istanbul," Pamuk has often observed that it is his interviews in publications, rather than his books, that have drawn legal action and criticism in Turkey.

The novels -- "Snow," "My Name Is Red," "The White Castle," "The Black Book" and "The New Life" -- both political commentary and contrasts between Western and Turkish culture -- continue to sell well.

That's no surprise, Pamuk said.

"The novel now is no longer a Western form but a global one," he said, citing the recent emergence of fiction in China, Latin America and Russia.

"The novel is a vital, if not essential form of communication," he added. "I don't write for only my Turkish readers, but for readers all over the world."

Orhan Pamuk speaks at 7:30 p.m. in the Carnegie Music Hall. Tickets: 412-622-8866.