The Black Book

This is an extremely complex ,and at times, difficult novel to read. For a Turk or someone familiar with Istanbul, some of the" stories within a story" may be fascinating. However for a non-Turk this book was more frustrating than attempts to read Marcel Proust. The scenes described are often hallucinatory, and subsequent narration of the same incident through different eyes, leaves you with the feeling that you have lost your place, and are re-reading the same material with a misunderstanding of what you are positive you had read and understood earlier.The book is about identity, alienation and the art of writing . The author's intent to mislead the reader is deliberate. Like Galip, the main character of the novel , you are constantly forced to re-evaluate that which you were quiet confident that you understood the first time around. Ultimately it becomes too disorientating, and tiresome. I have no doubt that "The Black Book" is considered a Great Novel. However Pamuk's style, in translation, makes this work very difficult and less than rewarding to read.The story of the Mannequin Maker however is very haunting, and it is this/those segment(s) of the novel which I will always remember and rediscover in memory.

Pamuk's "The Black Book" is the densest of his novels, and probes the mind of a man in the middle of a mystery with startling perception. The actual plot of the novel is paper thin; Galip goes home one day to see his wife gone, and his famous columnist cousin Celal missing as well. In his dazed effort to figure out their whereabouts, he tries to get under Celal's skin. Galip studies every aspect of Celal's life, and in so doing discovers revelations about himself, the dimensions of self, and the release of the self through writing, among man other things. This is at its core (and what a dense, labrynthine core that is) a stark philosophical story about Turkish identity. As such it is oftentimes unremittingly complex, and at others it is a highly intellectual piece of escapism. This is a story full of windy minarets, deep dark underground rooms, jarring phone calls from strangers, and lots of mysterious walks late at night. Pamuk's language is typically brilliant, ensnaring the reader close enough to make him able to wax poetic about the meaning of life without making it too dry. The reviewers below are correct- this is a novel to re-read, possibly many times, in order to understand its many layers. Thankfully it is interesting enough to haunt you into doing just that.

This is the second Orhan Pamuk book that I have read, SNOW being the first. As with SNOW, BLACK puts the reader through dense and often obscure background of the characters while getting to the point of the plot. Given the turkish government attempts to repress this author, I feel like I am getting a window into the country and the character of the citizens. It is fiction that carries the weight of a dire social and cultural reality. This is not a book for the featherweight reader.

Book arrived just as described in new condition.

I read each page of this book twice, to come back again and to read it for a third time. It is one of the most beautiful prose I have ever read.As he describes so well, Orhan Pamuk is a "picturesque writer" and the poetry in his imagery so devastating. There is so much melancholy and a deep sense of tragedy in this piece that it is beyond my imagination.I had already read Snow and his memoire Istanbul. But "The Black Book" is my favorite.

Getting immersed in this delicious book was something like getting lost in the wonderful foreignness of a medieval land. It's a beautiful Turkish tale of identity, forgetfulness and remembering, love and belief which features metaphors and turns of phrase that can take your breath away. From the opening phrases to the last, The Black Book is beautiful -- often strange and sinister, but overwhelmingly beautiful.

I found this novel incredibly hard work - after the absolute delight of A Strangeness in my Mind I had high hopes, but found much of this one impenetrable.

I loved Pamuk's Snow, but this one is even better.

Rather vague with some good descriptions of Istanbul.

A good read but nothing to getting really appreciate or get excited about!

Orhan Pamuk is extra ordinary writer, i dont know why some people rate it under 5 stars, what lovely language he used when he writesyou should read his other books as well

all good

A fascinating book, engrossing, and instructive.Intriguing, full of detail, superbly written without pretension, Orhan Pamuk is a very fine writer. See also his novel Snow.