Viattomuuden museo (2008)

This is a strange book. I really enjoyed the writing. To be honest, I love the writing. On the other hand I cringed every time the protagonist addressed the readers to talk about his little pet museum. I recognize similar feelings from lovelorn moments in my life, and even the best moments of reciprocal love--the way simple objects take on their own power. That's real.

I know the point is to not be embarrassed and cringe as we share those intimate, even embarrassing moments from our lives. But besides the distraction it caused me every time the protagonist became self-aware to talk about his collection with supposed museum attendees, it was the air of importance and expectation that droves of people, school buses full of kids even, would be going to visit. ( )

El ganador del Nobel de Literatura 2006, nos narra aquí una historia sobre una obsesión amorosa y la diferencia de clases. ( )

Immaculate story-telling. An object about objects, telling a story about time for a museum about time. Heartbreaking and happy. A beautiful, engaging, thoughtful and interesting book. ( )

Several years ago a neighbour gave me a bag of books, all of which I immediately discarded except this. It sat on my to read shelf for a year or so, until a long haul voyage, even worse, a long haul voyage with flu, was about to happen. Wondering what was possessing me, I put this in my bag. Now or never. Worst case it would find a new home in Australia. Best....

Well, best, it turned out, was amazing. Despite having the flu, despite seats right next to the toilet (really disgusting, just don't do it), I couldn't put down this book. It is a fascinating account of Istanbul in the fifties through seventies and worth reading just for that. A small, but topical aside, is the reminder that Islamic terrorism against Westernisation has always existed. It is part of the backdrop of this story. It means physical danger, it means for women, harassment as they try to shake off oppression. It is about the divide that people on social media would have you think is new: urban vs rural, when it has always been there. How could one think otherwise?

There is graphic detail here of simple things like how it was going to the cinema - Pamuk is willing to lavish any number of words to paint his pictures. Minimalist he is not. But extravagantly sitting over all this is the story. The story of how a sexist wealthy Turk in the normal course of affairs thinking that he could have a wife on the one hand and his love on the other, discovers that he can't. He is split asunder and suffers such pain when he realises his terrible mistake that he is willing to surrender the rest of his life to trying to fix the situation, turn back the clock, and pick his mistress for his wife. She, meanwhile, has married lovelessly, the whole thing is senseless pain and anguish and a knot in your stomach for God knows, hundreds and hundreds of pages.

rest here: https://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpress.com/2017/06/21/the-museum-of-innocence-b... ( )

Several years ago a neighbour gave me a bag of books, all of which I immediately discarded except this. It sat on my to read shelf for a year or so, until a long haul voyage, even worse, a long haul voyage with flu, was about to happen. Wondering what was possessing me, I put this in my bag. Now or never. Worst case it would find a new home in Australia. Best....

Well, best, it turned out, was amazing. Despite having the flu, despite seats right next to the toilet (really disgusting, just don't do it), I couldn't put down this book. It is a fascinating account of Istanbul in the fifties through seventies and worth reading just for that. A small, but topical aside, is the reminder that Islamic terrorism against Westernisation has always existed. It is part of the backdrop of this story. It means physical danger, it means for women, harassment as they try to shake off oppression. It is about the divide that people on social media would have you think is new: urban vs rural, when it has always been there. How could one think otherwise?

There is graphic detail here of simple things like how it was going to the cinema - Pamuk is willing to lavish any number of words to paint his pictures. Minimalist he is not. But extravagantly sitting over all this is the story. The story of how a sexist wealthy Turk in the normal course of affairs thinking that he could have a wife on the one hand and his love on the other, discovers that he can't. He is split asunder and suffers such pain when he realises his terrible mistake that he is willing to surrender the rest of his life to trying to fix the situation, turn back the clock, and pick his mistress for his wife. She, meanwhile, has married lovelessly, the whole thing is senseless pain and anguish and a knot in your stomach for God knows, hundreds and hundreds of pages.

rest here: https://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpress.com/2017/06/21/the-museum-of-innocence-b... ( )