Why a Booktrail?
1980s: The setting is Istanbul shortly before the military coup of 1980 and where the political situation is a mere backdrop for what is in fact an intensely personal story.
The Black Book
What you need to know before your trail
A cult novel in Turkey in which Galip, a lawyer, searches for his wife following her disappearance. Could she have left to find her first husband, Celal, a well-known newspaper columnist?However Celal, too, has disappeared and Galip soon finds himself adopting Celal’s identity in order to try and get to the truth
Travel Guide
This is an ode to Istanbul as well as to the Turkish literary and political scene as Pamuk conveys much though on the Turkish dilemma of being caught between the two continents of Asia and Europe. the issues of secularism v modernism seem to be significant too and more so as he uses his thoughts on the Ottoman culture to try and explain his own muddied ideals.
Awash with atmosphere, Pamuk takes us on a tour of the local neighbourhoods and the sights of note in and around the city. There are the anecdotes too which added to the ‘tour’ bring out the essence of a book dedicated to the ‘Turkish identity.’
Where Next?
