Book Review: 'A Strangeness in My Mind' by Orhan Pamuk

 'A Strangeness in My Mind' by Orhan Pamuk

I've been reading A Strangeness in My Mind which is written by Orhan Pamuk. He is not a regular author that anyone can read easily. You need to have a background in reading in order to love him. But gladly, A Strangeness in My Mind is not of these hard-to-read books. The story is so clear and catchy so that I don't want to leave the book for a second.

It's about Mevlut, a boza -a traditional Turkish drink that goes back to the Ottoman Empire- seller, and his family. We see a family tree on the first page of the book. Although in the very first moment, it might scare us to see all these characters together, once you start reading you realize that it's not that hard to memorize them. On the contrary, these characters contribute to the story.

'A Strangeness in My Mind' by Orhan Pamuk

A Strangeness in My Mind, as Orhan Pamuk says, is a novel in which we look at the city and life through the people who were added to Istanbul afterward. While reading the 50-year Istanbul adventure of our main character Mevlut and his family, we also witness social and political changes in the city's structure and society. Right-left conflicts, coups, the events of September 6-7, the abandonment of non-Muslims in Istanbul, an Islamic party first took power in Istanbul and then became the ruling party... Long story short, we read many things that we are familiar with in our recent history. In this respect, A Strangeness in My Mind is a sociological book that mirrors our recent history and we can observe changes in society and in the characters while reading.

Istanbul has grown and changed rapidly in 50 years. It is no longer the city where Mevlut came as a child. The old squatter houses are replaced by high-rise buildings, and individualism came to the forefront over the neighborhood. Urban transformations are taking place, old inhabitants are being pushed out of the neighborhood. As a result of all these changes, Mevlut feels that he is slowly being pushed out of society. As it can be understood, the name of the book comes from Mevlut because there is much strangeness in his mind. Mevlut watches the people enter jobs and get wealthy because they know someone from politics. Although he also works in different jobs throughout the book, he never gives up his boza sales. Selling boza is an heirloom from his father.

Orhan Pamuk

The book draws you from its first page. To those who hesitate to read because Orhan Pamuk's language is difficult, A Strangeness in My Mind might be the first book I would recommend. It is a delightful novel to read in terms of being fluent in both language and current issues, as well as being a sociological book with different characters. It is a must-read book for those who are interested in sociology and want to meet Orhan Pamuk.

August 2019

Emel