My Name Is Red
by Orhan Pamuk
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Book Reviews of My Name Is Red
Book Review: On art and culture
Summary: 5 Stars
I finished Orhan Pamuk's _My name is Red_ just over an hour ago, and the pleasant euphoria of having finished a truly great book is just beginning to wear off. In short - read it.
I have to take issue with the marketing for this book, though, and I have some symapathy for those who picked up this book expecting a good murder mystery and were disappointed. I have to blame the publishers and the booksellers for this one - I bought it looking for something fun. Two of the three reviews on the cover, as well as the back blurb describe it was "sinful" and the blurb calls it "a kaleidoscopic journey into the intersection of art, religion, love, sex, and power." All of these descriptions are misleading.
_My name is Red_ is a book about art - in general, and the differences between Eastern and Western art in particular. Before reading, I had never thought about the causes or consequences of style, perspective, and composition in art, and the cultural and religious causes of differences in these components. I think that after reading _My name is Red_, I feel like I will have a much greater appreciation and understanding of these things - and a few more wrinkles in my brain. : ) .
A few have commented on the translation - I don't know any Turkish, but I didn't notice any glaring or awkward phrasing that poorly translated books can have - (Murakami's novels spring to mind).
All in all, this was a fantastic read. Highly recommended.
Book Review: Islamic Medieval Art & Intrigue In Istanbul
Summary: 4 Stars
This novel is both a murder mystery and a detailed excursion into Islamic art history by one of Islam's prominent contemporary authors. In today's world,Islamic fiction is or should be important to intelligent people; Pamuk is about the best they have going for them. I have also read the more recent "Snow" which might be a little more accessible to the average reader and certainly more contemporary and more poetic. The problem with this novel is its intense historicity which is extremely exotic to Western readers; also, the translation makes many long chapters read more like a dry textbook in Islamic art history. Islamic religious history, including its art history, is steeped in a rigid traditionalism and fundamentalism, unlike Western history, which makes it even worse and is certainly one of the main points to be made about this book and about "Snow". Still the plot is noteworthy and with a little imagination you might compare it to an Alfred Hitchcock thriller. There is a more secular plot which runs parallel to the plot about art history: in this subplot, Black tries to win the hand of Shekure, whose husband is away at the warfront and whose fate is uncertain. This is a fairly common theme in Western novels as well, and in Western movies, too: "Moonlight Mile" with Dustin Hoffman is an example, as is the made-for-tv British series "We'll Meet Again." For bringing Istanbul's and Islam's medieval exoticism to Western eyes this novel well deserves 4 stars.Book Review: I am a reader!
Summary: 5 Stars
"My name is Red" is the third novel I've read so far from Orhan Pamuk, but after finishing the Black Book and reading the first page of this one, he became my favorite living author! Of course as an Iranian, I was privileged compared to other readers, as I already knew many of the stories mentioned in the book (like the story of Khusrov and Shirin, or Rostam and Sohrab, and many of other Ferdowsi's "The book of the kings" stories). Plus, I was also familiar with the Persian painting and Miniature and the work of painters like Bihzad (who halt the time!).
"My name is Red" is not a simple read, so please don't choose it if you're looking for reading a fun murder mystery! Still, its complexity is much less than many of Pamuk's other novels. This one is not all poetic philosophy...it has a clear plot, action, even a few dialogues! Plus, I found that by changing the point of view from chapter to chapter, as a reader I felt empathy and a true understanding toward each of the characters of the novel.
As expected, the beauty of Pamuk's prose and the poetry of this made-up world are breathtaking and I have to confess that I loved to explore in this labyrinth of story inside story. As if I was sharing the mysterious world of a king listening to Scheherazade's thousand and one unfinished tales.
Orhan pamuk mainly writes for lovers of true literature, so if you are one...then this book is definitely for you!
Book Review: So much to digest...
Summary: 4 Stars
This was not an easy book to read, but the best books usually aren't. If I had to come up with one adjective to describe "My Name is Red", it would be "deep."
There's a lot going on in this novel -- a compelling love story, loads of religious and artistic conflict (much of it internal), plenty of mythology and history, and a murder mystery that drives the narrative, but at the same time seems secondary (at best) to all of the above.
The multiple perspective first person is generally not hard to follow because with few exceptions, it rotates through the same characters. The narrators are also helpfully labeled in the titles to reduce confusion.
The difficulty is more in keeping the various history and mythology straight and understanding how it drives certain characters' behavior. If it hadn't been such a struggle to get through, I would say it's worth reading twice.
I enjoyed the open debate about East vs. West and traditional vs. Frankish (Western soon-to-be Renaissance) art style. There is practical value in reading Pamuk's allegory of this troubled period. A surprising amount applies to modern debate about the value of the arts and religion. But again, there's a lot of it and you're a far better reader than I if you end up understanding it all.
Book Review: I sometimes saw red
Summary: 3 Stars
Unfortunately I am one of those people who can't discard a book before I have finished reading it - otherwise I would have abandoned this one half way through. The main subject is interesting enough: the clash between the Venetian and Islamic attitude to art in the 16th century - the former individual, the latter stylized, the former aiming at realism, the latter at representing the perfect form as it is supposed to be in the mind of God. In the course of the book one learns a lot about the techniques and history of Islamic miniature painting and of the "guilds" of miniaturists - but all this is hugely repetitive. Most of the chapters are recounted by one or another of the members of one such guild which is working on an illuminated book for the Sultan, but the characters are almost indistinguishable one from another. You are supposed to be on tenterhooks to discover which one of them murdered a colleague and then a master miniaturist and why - I really couldn't care less. There is a certain amount of atmosphere in the descriptions of the power of the Sultan and his ministers, the arbirary and cruel way in which it is exercised and the readiness to resort to torture. There are some other glimpses of the life of Istanbul, and there is a love story. But I cannot understand why this book is said to have been so acclaimed.