books@cc.

by Orhan Pamuk (1998)

In Istanbul, in the late 1590s, the Sultan secretly commissions a book to Enishte Effendi, instead of his head illustrator, Master Osman. Working with the most prominent miniaturists of the day: Elegant, Butterfly, Stork, and Olive, Enishte is to create a book that will display the Sultan’s prominence and power to the infidel Venetians — illustrated in the Frankish manner, i.e. using shadows, perspective, etc. to make the subjects recognisable and representational.

The novel opens with a narration by a corpse (“I am a corpse”), presenting the reader from the beginning with a mysterious murder. Black, Enishte’s nephew who still harbours a desire for Shekure, Enishte’s daughter, is summoned to investigate the murder. This might bring to mind Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose. Indeed, both weaves a detective story within a rich tapestry of history, religion and aesthetic meditations, told in engaging multi-perspectives of not only the main characters, but also of a painted dog, horse, tree, the colour red, etc., all combined to paint a lively picture of 16th century Istanbul.

The book comes with a map at the beginning and a historical chronology surrounding the events in the book. For those in Sydney, you might also want to check out the current exhibition on The Arts of Islam from the collection of Nasser D. Khalili at the Art Gallery of NSW (22 June – 23 September 2007).

Tags:historical-fiction, Islam, Middle East, thriller, Turkey, Turkish-Literature
Middle East, Pamuk, Orhan, Recommended, Turkey, fiction

July 17, 2007 @ 3:55 am  | 1 Comment