Thursday 27 December 2018

July Reviews

A Strangeness in my Mind
Orhan Pamuk
2.5/5
Faber & Faber Paperback Jul 2016
Recommendation from Daddy

As you can tell from the rating, I am in two minds about this one. There are definitely pros and cons to it, let me go through a few of them now.
Pro: As with all Orhan Pamuk's books, it is a love letter to Istanbul. The characters wind their way through the streets of the old town and descriptions of the city really bring the reader into the setting.
Con: It can get a little draining hearing about the different districts that spring up and endless descriptions of the space.
Pro: Character development is lovely, this book spans over a decade, which means that there is ample time to get to know all the characters from several angles.
Con: It's set over a decade! I would say it's too long, but the premise is that it is s true documentation of someones life-time so to cut out a chunk of years doesn't really work.
Pro: The story is great, exciting in parts, as well as interesting and intriguing. I definitely enjoyed many things about this book. But I think it needs to be read at a time when you can really commit the time to reading the story in a few sittings (holiday in Istanbul perhaps?). I found it difficult to get into the story every time I picked it up on the tube and I did read it very slowly. Not one I'd read again, but a narrative that will stay with me.

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