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shoddy23's review against another edition
3.0
Ka seems, depending on whose perspective you take, to be either an infidel from Istanbul, corrupted by Western ideology, or a free-thinking poet looking for someone or something to love. Being a natural hedonist, his loyalties seem to waver according to whoever he is with at the time.
Spoiler
One minute he loves Ipek, the next it's her sister. He can't even seem to make up his mind whether or not to believe in God. He knows, by the end of the novel, he can never be happy because what he wants will never be his, so he finally does make up his mind and makes the decision that seals his fate.alattebooks's review against another edition
5.0
Bloody brilliant
It seemed like it was based on a true story, I may be wrong and in which case this was so beautifully written.
Essential reading
It seemed like it was based on a true story, I may be wrong and in which case this was so beautifully written.
Essential reading
letsreadmorebooks's review against another edition
2.0
it took me a long time to get through this book. at times i thought it would never end. slow-paced, lots of pages dedicated to internal struggles over God and love, and about 3,000 references to snow. i read it because pamuk is a nobel laureate. eh.
solaana's review against another edition
If this is the one about the slew of women who kill themselves, yeah, ok. Downer!
christar_123's review against another edition
4.0
This book definitely leaves the reader with a lot to think about. In the beginning, I was very taken with the poetic prose, and the beautiful descriptions that Pamuk used to illustrate the city and the characters. The coup in the middle of the story, which influenced the rest of the novel, was a surprise and definitely gave the second half of the book a different feeling.
In some ways, I found Pamuk's style to be Kafka-esque; the way that the plot advanced almost too quickly and strangely; the way that characters who were nearly strangers opened up their souls to another person; the way that strange events were only kind of explained. There was some humor in the story but mostly an overall sadness. And the vague feeling that you knew it was not going to work out but weren't sure what would go wrong/ where it would go wrong also reminded me of Kafka.
Parts of it also reminded me of Morocco: the way that everyone watched the Mexican soap opera every evening; the men spending their days in tea-shops and complaining about lack of work. Ideas about religion and the absolute belief that only Islam is a valid religion and preaching to everyone but still getting drunk and having sex and talking about murder and suicide....
I don't know if it was because of the translation or just the writing style but it definitely felt like something was strange about the dialogue. There were often illogical jumps in what was going on (though this also reminded me of some conversations in Morocco) and the manner in which characters came to decisions were so abrupt. This reminded me of the foreign soap operas that we used to watch in Morocco- maybe it's a Turkish thing?
Overall, it was a beautifully written book that gives one a lot to ponder; I definitely don't agree with a lot of the ideas and found some very disturbing but that makes it a more worthwhile read.
Quotes:
-For this reason, he may have been taken by a desire to look farther afield for childhood and purity: if the world he no longer knew in Istanbul was no longer to be found, his journey to Kars can be seen as an attempt to step outside the boundaries of his middle-class childhood, to venture at long last into the other world beyond. (19)
-"Was it hard for you in Germany?" asked Ipek.
"The thing that saved me was not learning German," said Ka. "My body rejected the language, so I was able to preserve my purity and my soul." (35)
- The thing that binds us together is that we have both lowered our expectations of life. (38)
-No one seemed to be complaining about the coup; instead, the mood was much as he remembered from the coups of his childhood: There was a sense of new beginnings and of a change from the vexing routines of everyday life....Ka found the general lack of interest liberating. (235-236)
-"Heroic dreams are the consolation of the unhappy. After all, when people like us say we're being heroic, it usually means we're about to kill each other - or kill ourselves." (334)
-"But in a brutal country like ours where human life is cheap, it's stupid to destroy yourself for the sake of your beliefs. Beliefs, high ideals - only people living in rich countries can enjoy such luxuries." (338)
-"Actually, it's the other way round. In a poor country, the only consolation people can have is the one that comes from their beliefs." (338)
"It's not my intelligence that frightens you, you fear me because I'm my own person," said Kadife. "Because here in our city, men don't fear their women's intelligence, thy fear their independence." (435)
In some ways, I found Pamuk's style to be Kafka-esque; the way that the plot advanced almost too quickly and strangely; the way that characters who were nearly strangers opened up their souls to another person; the way that strange events were only kind of explained. There was some humor in the story but mostly an overall sadness. And the vague feeling that you knew it was not going to work out but weren't sure what would go wrong/ where it would go wrong also reminded me of Kafka.
Parts of it also reminded me of Morocco: the way that everyone watched the Mexican soap opera every evening; the men spending their days in tea-shops and complaining about lack of work. Ideas about religion and the absolute belief that only Islam is a valid religion and preaching to everyone but still getting drunk and having sex and talking about murder and suicide....
I don't know if it was because of the translation or just the writing style but it definitely felt like something was strange about the dialogue. There were often illogical jumps in what was going on (though this also reminded me of some conversations in Morocco) and the manner in which characters came to decisions were so abrupt. This reminded me of the foreign soap operas that we used to watch in Morocco- maybe it's a Turkish thing?
Overall, it was a beautifully written book that gives one a lot to ponder; I definitely don't agree with a lot of the ideas and found some very disturbing but that makes it a more worthwhile read.
Quotes:
-For this reason, he may have been taken by a desire to look farther afield for childhood and purity: if the world he no longer knew in Istanbul was no longer to be found, his journey to Kars can be seen as an attempt to step outside the boundaries of his middle-class childhood, to venture at long last into the other world beyond. (19)
-"Was it hard for you in Germany?" asked Ipek.
"The thing that saved me was not learning German," said Ka. "My body rejected the language, so I was able to preserve my purity and my soul." (35)
- The thing that binds us together is that we have both lowered our expectations of life. (38)
-No one seemed to be complaining about the coup; instead, the mood was much as he remembered from the coups of his childhood: There was a sense of new beginnings and of a change from the vexing routines of everyday life....Ka found the general lack of interest liberating. (235-236)
-"Heroic dreams are the consolation of the unhappy. After all, when people like us say we're being heroic, it usually means we're about to kill each other - or kill ourselves." (334)
-"But in a brutal country like ours where human life is cheap, it's stupid to destroy yourself for the sake of your beliefs. Beliefs, high ideals - only people living in rich countries can enjoy such luxuries." (338)
-"Actually, it's the other way round. In a poor country, the only consolation people can have is the one that comes from their beliefs." (338)
"It's not my intelligence that frightens you, you fear me because I'm my own person," said Kadife. "Because here in our city, men don't fear their women's intelligence, thy fear their independence." (435)
jayfr's review against another edition
1.0
I don't throw the word hate around lightly, but I absolutely hated this book!
The author made himself a character in his own story, then tried to imply it was a biography even though it clearly says it's a novel.
The charactarization in this novel is terrible, the men are whinging, childlike and fall in love with every woman they see. The women are either drop dead gorgeous or fat, there is no realism at all.
Yes, I get this won the Nobel Prize for Literature but it wasn't for me at all.
Will I read again... NO
Will I recommend... NO
Will I read more by this author... NO
The author made himself a character in his own story, then tried to imply it was a biography even though it clearly says it's a novel.
The charactarization in this novel is terrible, the men are whinging, childlike and fall in love with every woman they see. The women are either drop dead gorgeous or fat, there is no realism at all.
Yes, I get this won the Nobel Prize for Literature but it wasn't for me at all.
Will I read again... NO
Will I recommend... NO
Will I read more by this author... NO
molekyyli's review
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
krtlszlv's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jairrob's review
A 2.5-2.75 based on my personal interaction with this book. I don't doubt the quality of Snow, but--just based on my own experience--i did not enjoy reading this book. I'm very aware that enjoyment =/= quality, hence why i'm not leaving an official rating for this book. I'll have to come back to it another time, and I sincerely hope I can come to love this novel just as others have.