Snow by Orhan Pamuk Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Snow
Book Review: Fascinating
Summary: 5 Stars
Snow is a fascinating novel about the place of religion, love and politics in modern rural Turkey. This is an area that is largely ignored by the world, and this book opens up new vistas for the reader.
The writing style is very unusual. The author moves back and forth between the first and third party. This speaks to the merging of the author and the main character, in understanding and character. It makes a fascinating and multi-faceted read.
Book Review: First intro to Pamuk and not in the least disappointed
Summary: 4 Stars
"... a wave of suicides among religious girls forbidden to wear their head scarves."
That's all I need to read to know I'm snatching this $2 book from the local bargain bookstore. How could I resist? Nevermind that I was dying to read "My Name is Red" first, I snatched this up and read it not long after purchase. Why am I reading so many negative reviews on this book? What were people expecting? Did anyone read the back page?
Tone is not satisfying to some... some find it 'boring to read'... Well I obviously didn't know what to expect given this was my first encounter of Pamuk's work, but I was not disappointed in the least. If anything, I felt very drawn to the story and found the book hard to put down. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next, and above all between Ka and Ipek.
Am I biased because I've always been interested in East-West tensions? Or because one of my father's best friends is Turkish (more of the atheist variety - ha!) ? I don't think so. And even if so, I think this book is very relevant to the world's current situation and offers insight into a country and culture which many may be unaware of. But also, what I least expected, is that it does touch on the subject of love as well. This is not a happy book, and quite honestly, if that's what one expected, you weren't paying much attention right from the start. It's rather dark--and the snow makes quite an interesting and effective metaphor for that-- and at the end I did feel very sad. Even now when i think back on the story, I do get melancholic. But am I sad because of the political aspects of this story? I think in all honesty, I felt sadder about Ipek and Ka (and even then, one is free to get explorative and decide whether each character 'represents' a political side, or take it another route too).
Having read enough Russian novels to depress me for the rest of my days, I also found a kind of similarity between Pamuk's storytelling and tones found in much of Russian literature.
"Snow" is a sad story. Perhaps even painful.
But I'd say it's a 'pain' worth experiencing.
And if this is Pamuk 'at his worst,' then I have much to look forward to in his other works.
Book Review: For those who enjoy non-fiction maskerading as fiction
Summary: 2 Stars
Orhan Pamuk is a very fine writer, and there are numerous gripping and moving passages. But the author's endless political, religious, and social diatribes are tiring; they would be more rewarding in a straight, non-fiction prose. Perhaps then the author could paint a realistic love story--here but a fishnet--without wooden characters obliterated in a sea of philosophical thought.Book Review: Good read, but a lack of clarity
Summary: 3 Stars
In a tale of love and destruction, Snow, written by Nobel Prize winning author Orhan Pamuk, encapsulates its audience by giving readers a solid understanding of who the characters really are. Pamuk has also written highly acclaimed novels worldwide such as My Name is Red and The Black Book. With most of Pamuk's novels, he dives into and exposes Turkish culture, just as he did in Snow. This novel is a fiction/romance with almost two separate plots: a love plot, and a plot of political turmoil. Snow was written with a purpose to expose the culture of Turkey and the Islamic religion that resides there. Because Pamuk's books are written in Turkish and then translated into several different languages, that means this book was intended for everyone with an interest and willingness to learn more about a culture different than their own.
Overall, this book was a good read, and I learned a lot from it. Despite the fact that I enjoyed the knowledge I gained from the book, I would not recommend it to another person. Snow lacks clarity. It has no clear final meaning or message. We don't really know what the author is trying to tell us because love fails our main character Ka and the political turmoil in the city also puts down religion. Therefore it is difficult to understand - is Pamuk saying that neither love nor religion is powerful? Snow is also very long and a slower read. So, in conclusion, I enjoyed reading it, but because I failed to find a positive or meaningful message in the end, I would not recommend it.
Book Review: Good stuff
Summary: 4 Stars
Engaging prose. Turks came off as a dysfunctional but noble bunch. The booke also fascinated me and made me want to visit and figure out what makes Turks tick. And there were some fleeting parallels to religious extremists in our country.