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A review by brughiera
My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
4.0
It's definitely worth accepting the challenge that this book poses. The period - late sixteenth century, location - Istanbul (referred to as such although it would have been Constantinople at the time) and, within the city, the atelier of miniaturists working for the Sultan, and the prevailing Islamic culture are all foreign to the modern reader. Then there is the format of the book, narrated in first person from a myriad of different perspectives including those of a corpse and a coin. As a result the underlying detective story of the hunt for the murderer flows with difficulty with diversions into numerous, often fascinating, eddies. The format certainly strengthens the characterization with characters revealing themselves and others in their monologues. Female characters, though fewer, are particularly memorable with the manipulations of the beautiful Shekure often directing the story and the Jewess Esther playing a vital intermediary role.
Pamuk initially set out to be an artist rather than a novelist and the care and attention paid to the portrayal of the craft of the miniaturists shows a professional understanding. Although some might find that the exploration by Master Osman of the Sultan's trove of classical illustrations unduly slows the unwinding of the plot, it also stimulates curiosity and desire to see these works that have been so prized. The threat posed to the art of the classical miniaturists by the portraiture of the infidel 'Franks' is analogous to the wider one posed by western civilization to the Ottoman Empire. Pamuk reveals further complexities within Ottoman society with the destruction of the coffee house by the fanatical Erzerumis and the tempting of miniaturists to go further east to the court of Akbar, Sultan of Hindustan.
The romantic aspects: Black's return after twelve years to his first love, Hasan's jealousy, and the suggested relationships with the beautiful apprentices in the miniaturists' workshop, add further skeins to the complex plot but pale beside the fierce devotion of Shekure to her sons which appears to be the main motivating force behind her actions.
A minor disappointment is the ending. Although the murder is solved and the murderer dealt with, there is a rather rushed summing up of the following steps ending with a surprising revelation of the author of the tale, which is at odds with the deliberate pace of the rest of the novel.
Pamuk initially set out to be an artist rather than a novelist and the care and attention paid to the portrayal of the craft of the miniaturists shows a professional understanding. Although some might find that the exploration by Master Osman of the Sultan's trove of classical illustrations unduly slows the unwinding of the plot, it also stimulates curiosity and desire to see these works that have been so prized. The threat posed to the art of the classical miniaturists by the portraiture of the infidel 'Franks' is analogous to the wider one posed by western civilization to the Ottoman Empire. Pamuk reveals further complexities within Ottoman society with the destruction of the coffee house by the fanatical Erzerumis and the tempting of miniaturists to go further east to the court of Akbar, Sultan of Hindustan.
The romantic aspects: Black's return after twelve years to his first love, Hasan's jealousy, and the suggested relationships with the beautiful apprentices in the miniaturists' workshop, add further skeins to the complex plot but pale beside the fierce devotion of Shekure to her sons which appears to be the main motivating force behind her actions.
A minor disappointment is the ending. Although the murder is solved and the murderer dealt with, there is a rather rushed summing up of the following steps ending with a surprising revelation of the author of the tale, which is at odds with the deliberate pace of the rest of the novel.