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A Strangeness in My Mind
Orhan Pamuk, Ekin Oklap (Translator)
4.14
15,300 ratings1,729 reviews
A Strangeness In My Mind is a novel Orhan Pamuk has worked on for six years. It is the story of boza seller Mevlut, the woman to whom he wrote three years' worth of love letters, and their life in Istanbul.
In the four decades between 1969 and 2012, Mevlut works a number of different jobs on the streets of Istanbul, from selling yoghurt and cooked rice, to guarding a car park. He observes many different kinds of people thronging the streets, he watches most of the city get demolished and re-built, and he sees migrants from Anatolia making a fortune; at the same time, he witnesses all of the transformative moments, political clashes, and military coups that shape the country. He always wonders what it is that separates him from everyone else - the source of that strangeness in his mind. But he never stops selling boza during winter evenings and trying to understand who his beloved really is.
What matters more in love: what we wish for, or what our fate has in store? Do our choices dictate whether we will be happy or not, or are these things determined by forces beyond our control?
A Strangeness In My Mind tries to answer these questions while portraying the tensions between urban life and family life, and the fury and helplessness of women inside their homes.
GenresFictionHistorical FictionTurkish LiteratureTurkishContemporaryLiterary FictionNovels
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624 pages, Hardcover
First published December 12, 2014
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About the author
Orhan Pamuk108 books9,842 followers
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Ferit Orhan Pamuk is a Turkish novelist, screenwriter, academic, and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. One of Turkey's most prominent novelists, he has sold over 13 million books in 63 languages, making him the country's best-selling writer.
Pamuk's novels include Silent House, The White Castle, The Black Book, The New Life, My Name Is Red and Snow. He is the Robert Yik-Fong Tam Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University, where he teaches writing and comparative literature. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2018.
Of partial Circassian descent and born in Istanbul, Pamuk is the first Turkish Nobel laureate. He is also the recipient of numerous other literary awards. My Name Is Red won the 2002 Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger, 2002 Premio Grinzane Cavour and 2003 International Dublin Literary Award.
The European Writers' Parliament came about as a result of a joint proposal by Pamuk and José Saramago. Pamuk's willingness to write books about contentious historical and political events put him at risk of censure in his homeland. In 2005, a lawyer sued him over a statement acknowledging the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire. Pamuk said his intention had been to highlight issues of freedom of speech in Turkey. The court initially declined to hear the case, but in 2011 Pamuk was ordered to pay 6,000 liras in compensation for having insulted the plaintiffs' honor.
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Elyse Walters
4,010 reviews11.4k followers
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February 9, 2017
"The Museum of Innocence", by Orhan Pamuk, was one of the most nail biting intense
stories of a wealthy man's obsession for a shopgirl in Istanbul I had ever read....
One hell of an amazing 600 page novel!!! Magnificent!
"A Strangeness in my Mind".... is also magnificent- brilliant - deliciously enjoyable. I lost myself through the eyes of Pamuks's protagonist seeking balance between the past and the present.
The story begins when an elopement goes wrong for Mevlut, a street vendor, living in Istanbul since the age of twelve. He returns to his native Anatolia to meet his beloved Rayiha. Arrangements have been made for them to run away together. Mevlut has glimpsed her just once, wearing a headscarf, at a wedding. Since then, he's written her hundreds of love letters - for three years - praising her beauty and eyes.
After making his getaway with his cousin, Suleyman driving, during the darkest of nights, Mevlut realizes his bride-to-be is actually the older homelier sister.
Being an honorable man, he makes peace with the situation and marries her. Mevlut was tricked by Suleyman who wants the younger, pretty 'Samiha' for himself.
Throughout the novel Mevlut senses a disconnect between self and the world-- and his lifelong efforts to harmonize the two.
Mevlut remains poor, working a variety of jobs while watching his initial vocation--as a street vendor selling yogurt and boza, a Turkish drink, disappear.
Mevlut walks at night - trying to sell his boza. Melancholy sets in...
"Walking fueled his imagination and reminded him that there was another realm within our world, hidden away".
There's many other characters who tell Melvut's unfolding story -- wonderful texture characters -- but this is Melvut's story. He uses his imagination to revise the past and make peace with the present! You gotta love this honorable, humble man selling boza!!!
Orphan Pamuk.... Winner of the Nobel Prize! Juicy storyteller!
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Aleks
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June 11, 2016
Well, after three weeks of reading I finally finished Orhan Pamuk’s latest novel “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık”, probably the best book I have read so far in this year. Not only that the novel is, in Pamuk’s recognizable way, a rather thick volume, reading it also coincided with general renovation of my flat (btw, great way to spend summer), so I had a very little time to dedicate to the book. Nonetheless, I kept going and found out that reading of this novel not just fulfilled me in the way that good books often do but also made me calm and relaxed, and because of that gave me a much needed rest from the general fatigue.
Previously, I wasn’t impressed by Pamuk’s “Masumiyet Müzesi” (“The Museum of Innocence”), the first novel that came out after he received the Nobel prize. I thought that it had much to do with the award itself because it seemed to me that authors tend to publish somewhat lesser work after the Nobel. Perhaps a memoir or autobiography (although Pamuk’s already done that with the remarkable “Istanbul”) – something to sum up their work and their life. After the award, very rarely one produces a masterpiece that can compare with his greatest achievements produced during the peak of his vitality.
But I was wrong. Pamuk’s latest novel, in my opinion, is by far his best novel - and I’ve read almost all of them.
Although the novel’s main character is a poor boza street salesman, this book – which is the greatest of all Pamuk’s virtue and virtuosity – talks mostly about Istanbul, the city itself. Like in some of his previous works, Istanbul becomes very much alive, almost like a human itself. Pamuk’s love for his birthplace is undeniable, and he continuously proves that with every novel that he writes.
In that sense, “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık” presents a history of Istanbul through main character, Mevlut Karatas, from 1969 to the 2012. Through that period, Istanbul changed in many ways – most of these ways were rather insurrectionary – and evidently, that continuous to happen today: in cultural, societal and identity aspects. The novel has everything: historical background, love story, social and cultural turbulences, multi-vocal narration and, most of all, incredible tableau of city of Istanbul.
Finally, I must thank the publishing house “Geopoetika” for the first world translation of this novel, and also recommend everybody to read it when it becomes translated in other languages. And if you befall to renovate your house or apartment while accidentally picking up “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık” to read, just do what I did after I’d finished job for that day: just drop by the local delicatessen shop and refresh yourself with a glass of iced boza.
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Hugh
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April 18, 2017
There is something rather old-fashioned but charming about this sprawling, languorous family story set in Istanbul over 40+ years. The central character Mevlut is a poor street trader who supplements various day jobs by spending his evenings selling boza (a traditional slightly alcoholic drink) on the streets. This represents something of a departure for Pamuk whose previous books have been set among the city's richer elite. This one also allows more space to its female characters.
The first two chapters are out of sequence - the first covers the night when Mevlut elopes with his wife Rayiha. He has been writing to Rayiha since seeing her sister at a family wedding - his cousin Suleyman has tricked him into addressing the letters to the "wrong" sister, but it soon becomes clear that Rayiha is the better match. The second chapter is many years later as Mevlut suffers a crisis of confidence after being robbed by ruthless street thieves. The rest of the book is told in chronological order, starting when Mevlut arrives in the city as a boy to help his father in his yogurt and boza selling business.
The real subject of the book is the city itself - Pamuk chronicles its expansion, modernisation, political and sociological changes in great detail. The incorruptible but poor Mevlut is contrasted with his scheming (and richer) cousins.
For such a long book, this is a surprisingly easy read - the story telling always keeps you interested despite the mundane nature of much of the story. A pleasure to read.
modern-classics modern-lit read-2017
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Mark Porton
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September 7, 2021
A Strangeness in My Mind by Orhan Pamuk is an audiobook I devoured after reading GR buddy, Anne’s, wonderful review. She loved it and so do I. It’s a long one – clocking in at over 25 hours, so I’ve been pretty much living in Istanbul for the past couple of weeks selling and drinking Boza and spending time with the lovely Mevlut. This one is well worth it.
First up, I hope I don’t I get some details too wrong as it’s so hard to stop and take notes when reading such an audiobook – when I say ‘stop’, that is literal, as I listened to this when walking the Pup or driving. So, this is a vibe review, based on memory and feeling.
Mevlut is a young boy from rural Turkey who moves to Istanbul with his father (Mustafa) in the late 1970s. He moves to (what is now) an inner-city suburb of Duetepe. His father sells a traditional fermented drink called Boza (pronounced “Bowza”) as street vendor. Boza sellers, walk the streets, usually during the colder months with a shoulder pole and a large jug of this dish balanced on either end. It’s a dying art, street walking Boza sellers are almost a thing of the past.
The humble Boza Seller
The street walking ‘Boza seller’ aspect of this book, a trade Mevlut takes over from his father – is central here, and important to – what I believe – is the true essence of this story, it also explains the book’s title. But be patient, this isn’t explained (people like me need these things easily laid out, but you may work it out sooner) until the last 30 minutes of the book.
Mevlut is a wonderfully friendly, optimistic, decent and hard-working young man. We are taken through his schooling, the dramas of the politics of Turkey at the time, his time in the Army, his obsessions with certain young women/girls, family relationships (there’s a lot of them – but I didn’t get lost, so you’ll be right!), married and family life and his constant struggle to make a decent living. By the way, the way Mevlut courted and eloped with his dream-love (Rayiha) is hilarious and was one of several “OH MY GOD!!” moments experienced during this story. The issues surrounding the beginning of this relationship follow this poor guy throughout the entire story, fair enough, it’s no small thing.
There are a great bunch of characters here such as Mevlut’s cousin Suleyman, who, in my view is a bit of a smug bastard and isn’t always nice to Mevlut – another one who is a bit of a wally is Korkut, another cousin. These guys are always trying to make a lira, there’s all types of conflicts to be endured and good times to be had.
Boza
But this isn’t just a story about Mevlut and his extended family and acquaintances it is perhaps more a story about this fascinating place called Istanbul. A place very much on my travel bucket-list even more so now. But during this piece – Istanbul grows from a city of around 3 million to a raging metropolis of over 13 million, over the course of over 4 decades. You also couldn’t choose a setting so steeped in history and tradition. Mevlut’s relationship with this place is pure magic – I think.
I highly recommend this, another 5-star read – I am due for a slump as I am bathing in a rich vein of reading-gold at the moment. I am desperate to now read, a carbon-based, paper book now to see if Orhan Pamuk is as good in the written word, I am sure he will be.
Oh, by the way the narrator John Lee, is superb. I love the way he shouts “Boooooooza”!!
Happy Days 5-Stars
If you want to check out a clip about a Boza Seller still operating today, check this out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqgTj...
5-stars audiobook chunkster
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T.D. Whittle
Author 3 books209 followers
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December 26, 2017
"I can only meditate when I am walking. When I stop, I cease to think; my mind works only with my legs." Jean-Jacques Rousseau
"I will sell boza until the day the world ends." Mevlut Karatas (p. 584)This book is long and meandering, its power like that of a fire built slowly from a bit of kindling and a single spark. From the beginning, it is carefully tended and coaxed along in a quiet but steady fashion until Whoosh!, it ignites in full glory.
A Strangeness in My Mind did not particularly grab me, in a dramatic sense, with its opening but it did interest me enough to keep going. It begins with the protagonist, Mevlut, a boza seller, and his fiancee, Rayiha, running away to elope. I liked Melvut and Rayiha, so I kept reading, all the while thinking that, yes, it is good; I am not loving it, but neither do I want to abandon it. We follow Mevlut's life from the time he is a boy of twelve until he is a man of fifty-five. The narrative structure is mostly linear, though there is a bit of slipping back and forth in time. There are a lot of characters in this book but I did not find them hard to keep track of. However, should you get lost, the author has provided a family tree at the beginning of the book and a character index and chronology at the end.
I felt bogged down in the years when Mevlut was an adolescent living alone with his father on the outskirts of the city, failing at his all-boys school, working as a street vendor, semi-stalking women he was obsessed with, and masturbating nonstop. Then, when Mevlut enters his mandatory military service, the book remains very male-focused, dominated by their interests, their dialogue, and their competitive struggles. Basically, these pages wreak of testosterone and musky sweat. As a woman reader, this bored me, I have to admit. I read a lot of books written by men, but I like the women and girls to be involved or I simply can't connect. *
Having said that, I did love wandering with Mevlut through Istanbul and hearing about the changes the city was undergoing over the years. And what happened over the course of the narrative is that my sense of intimacy with Mevlut and with Istanbul grew closer, insidiously, so that by the end I was shedding tears and felt a deep sympathy with him. Mevlut is within the city but the city is also within Mevlut. It is also a dynamic symbol of the tumultuous lives of impoverished Turkish families. Their fates and sorrows are intertwined.
So this is how Mevlut came to understand the truth that a part of him had known all along: walking around the city at night made him feel as if he were wandering around in his own head. That was why whenever he spoke to the walls, advertisements, shadows, and strange and mysterious shapes he couldn't see in the night, he always felt as if he were talking to himself. (p. 579)I cannot escape my impression that, if one were to put a gender to Istabul, it would be a woman: a grand and beautiful dowager who has been roughly treated but maintains her dignity and grace nevertheless. This is how the women in the book are presented, too. Though not all are roughly treated, they all have difficult lives, made all the more difficult by living in an oppressive patriarchy and struggling at various time with grinding poverty and lack of proper reproductive healthcare. In this way, I came to feel that Mevlut loved three women deeply and passionately during his lifetime: first, his crush, Samiha; then, his wife, Rayiha; and, from the age of twelive, his adopted city, Istanbul.
But just like believing in God, falling in love is such a sacred feeling that it leaves you with no room for any other passions.By about halfway through A Strangeness... had hooked me. I realised how completely invested I had become in the characters' well-being. I had not felt terribly attached to Melvut before then and, really, it was the women becoming more of a presence in the book that made it take off for me (Melvut's wife, Rayiha, their daughters, and Rayiha's sisters). Over six hundred pages, I fell in love with Melvut, Rayiha, their girls, the girls' aunties, and the rampaged and rambling sprawl of old Istanbul. These are very ordinary people, with ordinary lives, but the story of these lives is rich and proves the point that no one's story is boring if you attend closely enough to the telling. Pamuk is masterful in the telling, but it's a subtle mastery. He does not bash you over the head with bigness. The dramas, while intense and worrying, are not over-played. There are deaths, even one murder, but the details given are only enough to tell us that these things happened. Nothing gratuitous. I appreciate Pamuk's discretion and feel that his choices of when to zoom in and out of focus are near perfect.
I am reflecting on the aftertaste of A Strangeness in My Mind, thinking that it's probably a lot like boza: nostalgic, sweet, and just a bit sour, all at the same time.
"No, I'm not joking. Boza is holy," said Mevlut.
"I'm a Muslim," said Suleyman. "Only things that obey the rules of my faith can be holy."
"Just because something isn't strictly Islamic doesn't mean it can't be holy. Old things we've inherited from our ancestors can be holy, too," said Mevlut. "When I'm out at night on the gloomy, empty streets, I sometimes come across a mossy old wall. A wonderful joy rises up inside me. I walk into the cemetery, and even though I can't read the Arabic script on the gravestones, I still feel as good as I would if I'd prayed." (p. 271)Two desires that will linger with me now are to wander aimlessly through the nighttime streets of Istanbul and to try boza for myself. Pamuk is a beautiful writer. I am looking forward to more of his books.
* Note: For this reason, although I enjoy fantasy, I did not enjoy The Lord of the Rings, in which females are icons on pedestals rather than playing an active role, or Moby-Dick or, The Whale, or Das Boot, in which females have no place at all. I did like watching the films of Lord of the Rings though because they were spectacularly made. I was swept away by the awesome visuals.
Click on the following images to see the full version. They appear squashed unless you do that.
Istanbul painted by Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (1817-1900)
Istanbul painted by Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (1817-1900)reviews
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Hakan Yaman
Author 12 books66 followers
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August 13, 2015
Romanı nasıl bulduğuma geçmeden önce Orhan Pamuk’un romancılığı hakkında ne düşündüğümden biraz bahsetmem lazım.
Türkiye’deki görece sığ edebiyat denizinde çimmeye çalışanların birçoğunun aksine, ben Orhan Pamuk’un romancılığını beğenir, romanlarını keyifle okurum. “Edebiyat dünyamızdan” bazı yazarlar ve yazarlığa öykünen eleştirmenlerce kendisine yöneltilen eleştirilerin pek çoğunun başından beri tamamen kıskançlık temelli olduğunu düşünürüm. Bizim edebi değerlendirmelerimiz çoğunlukla, bir yazarın yaptığı işten çok, eş dost "okkalamacılığına" dayandığından ve yazar ve eleştirmenler daha ziyade tanıdığı, yiyip içtiği veya çıkar ilişkisi içinde olduğu yazarları onur listelerine sokma telaşına düştüğünden, Orhan Pamuk gibi kibirli ve mesafeli yazarlar pek sevilmez. Bu nedenle kendisine yöneltilen eleştirilerin çoğunu inandırıcı bulmadığımı baştan belirtmeliyim.
Orhan Pamuk’un romanlarını dikkatle okursanız, edebiyata tutkulu birinin disiplinli ve sabırlı çalışmasının sonuçlarının nerelere varabileceğini hayret ve hayranlıkla görürsünüz. Bütün bu övgüleri, samimi bir edebiyat ödülü olduğuna inanmadığım Nobel Edebiyat Ödülü’nün etkisinden bağımsız yazıyorum. Orhan Pamuk sadece iyi bir yazar değildir, Orhan Pamuk, Türkiye edebiyatının çıkardığı en büyük yazarlardan da biridir. Özellikle “Kara Kitap” bence bir şaheserdir. Hayranlarının ondan yeniden aynı seviyede bir roman beklemekle kendisine haksızlık ettiklerini düşünüyorum. Zira çoğu yazar hayatında bir kez bir “Kara Kitap” ya yazar ya da yazamadan ölür. Ayrıca “Kara Kitap”, Orhan Pamuk’un hâlâ nispeten “naif ve düşünceli” olabildiği, henüz şöhret hamamında yıkanmadığı yılların romanıdır. Bu nedenle artık geriye dönüp aynı samimiyette bir roman yazabilme olanağından ve olasılığından yoksun kaldığı gerçeğini de görmemiz gerekir.
Benim en iyi Orhan Pamuk romanları listemde, “Kara Kitap”tan sonra “Benim Adım Kırmızı” ve “Beyaz Kale” gelir. Son dönem yazdığı “Masumiyet Müzesi”ni de iyi Orhan Pamuk romanlarının arasına tereddütsüz koyarım. Ancak her yazarda olduğu gibi onun da romancılığında inişler, çıkışlar olmuştur. “Kar”, “Yeni Hayat” ve son romanı “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık” kanımca Pamuk’un yüksek edebiyat uçuşunda irtifa kaybettiği romanlar.
“Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık” kuşkusuz tipik bir Orhan Pamuk romanı… Roman onun hikâyeciliğinden tat alanlar için yine lezzetli bir okuma serüveni vaat ediyor. Ben de keyifle okudum. Orhan Pamuk, şimdiye kadar neyle eleştirildiyse sonraki romanlarında ona dokundu hep. Cinselliğe yeterince yer vermediği, kadın erkek ilişkisini iyi anlatamadığı eleştirilerine “Benim Adım Kırmızı”da, romanın konusuyla olmasa da ayrıntılarda gizli yanlarıyla sert bir karşılık vermeyi denemişti. Siyasete, ideolojiye, toplumsala yeterince duyarlı olmadığı, romanlarında bu konulardan uzak durduğu eleştirileri üzerine, “Kar” romanını yazmıştı. Bu defa da sanki Pamuk, çok satıyor ama çok okunmuyor görüşüne karşılık, alın size kolay anlayabileceğiniz bir hikâye ve sıkılıp, elinizden bırakmadan sonuna kadar okuyabileceğiniz bir roman, bunu da bir zahmet okuyun artık, der gibi... Ayrıca Orhan Pamuk, sadece kendi yetiştiği, büyüdüğü çevreleri ve kentsoylu yaşantısını yazabildiği, kendinden uzak olan yaşantılara dokunmadığı eleştirisine de yanıt veriyor bu romanla…
Orhan Pamuk’un çok sık yaptığı bir şey olmasa da, içinde ilginçliklerin yer almadığı, sadece sıradan insanların, sıradan hayatlarının anlatıldığı romanlar, özellikle Avrupalı ve Amerikalı yazarlarca daha önceleri yazıldı. Bu romanda Pamuk’un getirdiği yenilik bu değil, anlatıcının anlattıklarının arasına roman kişilerinin bir bir girip konuşuyor olmaları… Bu daha önce yapılmış mıydı emin değilim, zaten bunun pek bir önemi de yok. Pamuk bir söyleşisinde bunun daha önce yapılmadığını söylüyor. Daha önce yine kendisi “Benim Adım Kırmızı”da benzer bir tekniği, ayrı bölümlerde denemişti ve güzel olmuştu. Ancak bu romanda bence biraz eğreti durmuş.
Orhan Pamuk’un romancılığının belki de en eleştirilebilecek yanı, kendisine ve yaşadığı çevreye uzak kişileri birinci tekil şahıstan konuştururken karşımıza çıkan tam olmamışlık halidir. Her kim kendi ağzından bir şeyler anlatırsa anlatsın, aslında hep anlatıcı (çoğunlukla Orhan Pamuk) konuşur, ses, ton ve sözcük zenginliği fazla değişmez. “Benim Adım Kırmızı”da bohçacı Ester’in tıpkı Orhan Pamuk gibi konuşması eleştirilmişti diye hatırlıyorum. “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık”da bu durumla sıkça karşılaşıyoruz.
Anlatının arasına roman karakterlerinin girişleri Pamuk’un bugüne kadar yapmadığı deneysel bir yenilik olabilir. Fakat karakterlerin konuşma biçimleri, konuşurken seçtikleri sözcükler, eğitimleriyle, birikimleriyle, geldikleri kültürel sınıfla uyumlu olsaydı roman daha iyi olabilirdi. Orhan Pamuk aslında bu olumsuzluğu belki de hikâyesine biraz da mizahi bir yan katarak, kimi zaman bir karakterin, diğerinin konuşmasını kesip araya girmesi gibi durumlar yaratarak, okuduğumuz metne kendimizi fazla kaptırmamız gerektiğini, nihayetinde bunun bir kurmaca olduğunu hatırlatıyor bize. Yine de ben roman kişilerinin geldikleri kültürel sınıflarla uyumlu konuşmalarını tercih ederdim.
Bu duruma örnek verebileceğim çok yer var romanda. Ancak sadece bir ikisine yer vermekle yetineceğim. Mesela Mevlut’un karısı Rayiha, Mevlut’la köyden kaçıp İstanbul’a geldiği ilk gün şunları söylüyor:
“Mandalı çevirip pencereyi açamayınca Mevlut koşup ispanyoletin nasıl çalışacağını bana gösterdi. Sabunlu sularla iyice yıkanırsa, örümcek ağları temizlenirse evin düş kırıklıklarından, korkulardan, Mevlut’un hayalindeki şeytanlardan temizleneceğini hemen anladım.”
Muhteşem bir anlatım ama bunları söyleyen Rayiha olamaz. Ayrıca bırakın Rayiha’yı, şehirdeki çoğu insan ispanyoletin ne olduğu bilmez.
Romanın başka bir yerinde bu kez elektrik kontrol görevlisi Ferhat çıkıyor karşımıza:
“Altın kafes misali aynalı eski asansör durdu. Çok eski bir zamanda oluyordu bu, rüyalar kadar eski, ama aşk hep daha dün olmuş gibi gelir insana.”
Bunları bize yoğurtçu ikonlu anlatıcımız söylese daha inandırıcı olabilirdi, ama Ferhat’in ağzından bu şiirsel sözlerin dökülmesini okurken yadırgıyor insan.
Anlatıcının sahne aldığı yerlerde karşımıza çıkan yoğurtçu ikonu da inandırıcı olmadığı gibi gerekli de değil aslında. Romanı okurken o ikonun altından, Pamuk’un okura olan güvensizliğinin sırıttığını hissettim ben. Ortalama okura, yorulmasın diye kolay konu, kolay anlatım, edebiyat okurunun önüne de yeni bir varyete koymuş Pamuk. Ama bir taraftan da tedirgin; ortalama okur buralarda anlatıcıyla roman kişilerini karıştırır ve sıkılırsa, yolunu kaybetmemesi için trafik tabelaları gibi yoğurtçu ikonları çıkıyor karşısına.
Orhan Pamuk bu romanında bir yandan da başladığı yere geri dönmüş. “Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık”, ilk romanı “Cevdet Bey ve Oğulları”nda olduğu gibi bir ailenin göçünü ve İstanbul’un değişimini anlatıyor. Bu kez kentin geleneksel semtlerinden birinden alafranga bir muhite taşınan bir burjuva aile yerine, köyden kentin yeni kurulmakta olan varoşlarına taşınan sıradan insanların hikâyesini anlatmayı seçmiş Pamuk. Mevlut Karataş üzerinden bir ailenin uzun öyküsünü ve bu sürede İstanbul’un 60’lı yıllardan günümüze kadarki değişimini anlatmayı denemiş. Baba mesleği olan yoğurt ve boza satıcılığını İstanbul’da sürdüren Mevlut’un hiç de ilginç olmayan hayatını okurken, arka planda da değişen İstanbul’u izliyoruz. Fakat bu arka plan özensiz bir sahne dekoru gibi kalmış romanın içinde sanki. Sadece bir arka plan olması gerektiği için orada duruyor gibi, ana temaya inandırıcı bir katkı yapmaktan çok uzak. Türkiye’de kıyametin koptuğu yılları biz, arkadaşlarıyla Mevlut’un duvarlara afiş yapıştırmaya veya yazıya çıktığı geceler gibi birkaç yer dışında, uzaktan belli belirsiz yakalamaya çalışırken, ön planda Mevlut’un ilginç olmayan öyküsünü izliyoruz.
Gültepe ve Kuştepe gibi 60’lı yıllarda kurulmaya başlayan gecekondu mahallelerini çocukluğumdan hatırlıyorum. Sonraları Latife Tekin, “Berci Kristin Çöp Masalları” romanında güzel anlatmıştı buralardaki yaşantıyı. Gerek dönem manzaraları, gerekse mekân tasvirleri Pamuk’un kesinlikle bu romandaki öncelikleri değil. Pamuk, bilinçli olarak tercihini bu yönde kullanmamış; fonu flu yaparak, sıradan kahramanlarının öne çıkmalarını sağlamış. Daha çok Mevlut ve ailesinin hikâyesi ile bu hikâyeyi karakterlerinin ağzından nasıl anlatabileceği noktasına yoğunlaşmış. Biraz da öteden beri ilgi duyduğu sokak satıcılarının, çocukluğumuzun kış gecelerinden hâlâ bize seslenen bozacıların uzak seslerinin büyüsüne kapılmış.
Sonuç olarak Türkiye edebiyatının en usta anlatıcılarından birinden, tüm ayrıntıların, bazen aşırıya kaçan bir titizlikle araştırılıp yerli yerine koyulduğu muhteşem bir öykü dinliyorsunuz. Sonlara doğru, mesela “Mevlut Yalnız” gibi bölümlerde Orhan Pamuk’un anlatısının tırmandığını söyleyebilirim. Pamuk bu romanıyla bir kez daha, romanda ne anlattığınızın değil, nasıl anlattığınızın romanın edebi seviyesini belirlediğinin dersini veriyor bize.
Alıntılar: Orhan Pamuk, Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık, Yapı Kredi Yayınları, İstanbul, 2014, s. 177-329.
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Mohammad Hrabal
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November 11, 2020
کتاب خوبی بود. نقاط مثبت کتاب: ویراستاری عالی و ترجمهی نسبتا خوب
نقاط منفی کتاب: الف- متاسفانه بخشهای کوچکی از کتاب سانسور شده بود. قبلا خوانده بودم که پاموک نویسندهی متعهدی است و حس کردم در این کتاب به نوعی خنثی است. از طرفی بعضی چیزهای خیلی کوچک در مورد تعدادی از شخصیتها در هالهای از ابهام بود. به خاطر همین نسخهی ترجمه انگلیسی کتاب را به دست آوردم و نگاهی به آن انداختم. فهمیدم که متاسفانه سانسور صورت گرفته است. برای مثال هر جا دربارهی اسلامگراها یا رژیم ایران حرف نامطبوعی زده آن بخش تغییر کرده است. چند مثال را در بخش بعد اضافه میکنم.
ب- در ترجمهی انگلیسی در ابتدای کتاب یک صفحه شامل سه سخن، فهرست و یک شجرهنامه از شخصیتهای داستان و در انتهای کتاب یک گاهشمار زندگی و یک بخش اعلام هم وجود داشت که در ترجمهی فارسی نیامده بود
ج- یادداشت مترجم که ابتدای کتاب آمده بود و بخشهایی از داستان را لو داده بود و بهتر بود در موخره ذکر میشد
د- با توجه به 638 صفحه بودن کتاب، بهتر بود به صورت گالینگور منتشر میشد
پ1. نام کتاب هم ظاهرا از قطعه زیر گرفته شده که متاسفانه در ترجمهی فارسی نیامده بود (همان یک صفحه شامل سه سخن که در مورد «ب» گفتم) پ
I had melancholy thoughts…
a strangeness in my mind,
A feeling that I was not for that hour,
Nor for that place.
—William Wordsworth, The Prelude (A strangeness in my mind / Orhan Pamuk ; translated from the Turkish by Ekin Oklap)
پ2. بوزا یک نوشیدنی (شربت) است که در ترکیه و بلغارستان و یونان نوشیده میشود. بوزا در این کتاب مانند یک کاراکتر است. انگار زنده است. از اول تا آخر کتاب با آن زیاد سرو کار داریم. خیلی علاقهمند شدهام یک بار امتحانش کنم. عکسی از بوزا و بوزاچی (بوزا فروش) سرچ کردم که برایتان میگذارم.
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به بیمارستان رفتم. یک ماه در صفهای بیمارستان منتظر ماندم. بعد دکتر گفت که باید بارکشی را کنار بگذارم. البته برای پول درآوردن، به جای کنار گذاشتن بارکشی، دکتر را کنار گذاشتم. ص 48 کتاب
انسان ممکن بود در ازدحام شهر تنها باشد و در اصل چیزی که شهر را به شهر بدل میکرد، امکان پنهان کردن چیزهای غریبی بود که در سر میپراند. ص 120 کتاب
در واقع بهترین عشق، عشقی نیست که بشناسیش، عشقیه که بدون دیدن اون آدم بتونی ابراز کنی. مثلا کورها عاشقهای خوبی هستن. صفحات 161 و 162 کتاب
ازدواج یک دختر با فردی ناشناخته، راحتتر است زیرا هر چقدر مردها را بیشتر بشناسی، دوست داشتنشان سختتر میشود. ص 271 کتاب
به یاد آوردن عادتهایی که با تقلید از سنتهای غربی، فراموش شده بود، به اندازهی خاطرات اجدادمان، مقدس است. اگر بخواهیم، به عنوان یک تمدن، به هویت ملیمان، کشورمان و ایمانمان پایبند بمانیم، ابتدا باید به خوردنیها و نوشیدنیهای خودمان وفادار بمانیم. ص 431 کتاب
در کشور ما، ساده لوحترین هموطن هم، سرانجام رشوه دادن را یاد میگیرد. اگر رشوه را قبول نکنی، بعضیها مبلغ را بالاتر میبرند. ص 441 کتاب
چشمهای سمیحا را چرا به نرگس تشبیه کرده بود؟ ... در مورد نرگس اطلاعاتی به دست آورده بود: در زمانهای قدیم، زنها پوشیدهتر بودند و چون مردها فقط چشمهای زنها را میدیدند، تمام ادبیات رسمی و کوچه بازارای، بر پایهی چشمها استوار بود. ص 623 کتاب
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بعضی از آنهایی که سر میز بودند تکرار کردند:«زنده باد آتاترک.» مولود هم با آنان هم صدا شد. (بین این دو جمله چند جمله سانسور شده) «بوزاچی تو مادر زن داری؟» ص 35 کتاب
Some of the other diners cheered in response. Mevlut joined in.
“All right, fine, but what will become of Atatürk, of secularism, if the
Islamist parties take power? Will Turkey become like Iran?”
“Don’t you worry about that; the army won’t let them do that. They’ll
organize a coup, close the party down, and lock them all up. Isn’t that so,
boza seller?”
“All I do is sell boza,” said Mevlut. “I don’t get involved in high politics. I leave that to my betters.”
Even though they were all drunk, they heard the sting in Mevlut’s remark.
“I’m just like you, boza seller. The only things I’m afraid of are God and my mother-in-law.”
“Boza seller, do you have a mother-in-law?” (A strangeness in my mind / Orhan Pamuk ; translated from the Turkish by Ekin Oklap)
فرهاد خواند: تفسیر قرآن کریم، در پنج رنگ با جلد شومیز، در روزنامهی ارشاد، فقط با سی کوپن.
«پسر اگر اینها صاحب قدرت بشن، اولین کاری که میکنن، اینه که دستفروشی تو خیابونها رو جمع میکنن.( بخشی بین این دو جمله سانسور شده) یکی دو نفر از امثال تو رو هم اعدام میکنن.» مولود با سماجت گفت:« توی بوزا الکل هست، اما ببین اصلا اعتراضی میکنن؟»
“ ‘Full-color annotated Koran with protective dust jacket for just thirty
coupons from the Righteous Path,’ ” read Ferhat.
“You know, if these people take power, the first thing they’ll do is ban the street vendors, just the way they did in Iran. They might even hang one or two like you.”
“No way,” said Mevlut. “Boza’s alcoholic, but do you see anyone bothering me about it?” (A strangeness in my mind / Orhan Pamuk ; translated from the Turkish by Ekin Oklap)
در ده سال اخیر، اطراف خانهاش و نیز کوچههای چهارشنبه، پر از پیروان جناب افندی که لباسهای متنوع طریقت به تن داشتند شده بود. مولود از دینداری آلوده به سیاست آنها ترسیده بود و دیگر هیچ وقت به آن محله نرفته بود. ص 602 کتاب
In the past ten years, the streets all around the house in Çarşamba had filled up with votaries of many different sects, all wearing robes of one color or another. It was the same traditional religious garb that people wore in Iran and Saudi Arabia. These people’s political Islamism had begun to unnerve Mevlut, and eventually he stopped going there altogether. (A strangeness in my mind / Orhan Pamuk ; translated from the Turkish by Ekin Oklap)
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Özlem Güzelharcan
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March 6, 2015
Derin, zengin, her zamanki gibi akıcı, güzel bir anlatım.. Müthiş karakterler.. İlginç, farklı, şaşırtıcı bir teknik.. Bize özgü milyonlarca ayrıntı.. İnanılmaz bir İstanbul tarihi araştırması.. Şahsi görüşüm de resmi görüşüm de şudur ki ben bu kitabı çok sevdim!
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Lyubov
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June 2, 2016
Отне ми близо два месеца, за да приключа най-новия роман на Орхан Памук с прелестното заглавие „Странност на ума”, което всъщност е част от стих на Уърдсуърт. Книгата се оказа изключително подробен труд с истории на много нива, разказани от различни гласове и ми е наистина трудно да си избера една нишка, от която да започна неговото разплитане и обговаряне.
В центъра на разказа е уличният продавач на боза Мевлют, чиято заплетена лична история се развива на фона на изключително важни събития от най-новата турска история и като във всеки себеуважаващ се обемен роман обхваща впечатляващия период от 1969 г до 2012 г. Никого няма да изненадам със споделянето на факта, че действието се развива в Истанбул и градът отново е герой на повествованието, колкото и самият Мевлют. През тези години мегаполисът се променя драстично в културно, социално и геополитическо отношение и всички тези промени се случват плавно пред очите ни, неразривно свързани с живота на героите.
Повествованието се води от гледните точки на дузина лица и понякога перспективата се сменя по няколко пъти на страница, образувайки същински калейдоскоп от мнения и виждания за една и съща ситуация. Безспорно интересен и специфичен похват, на който си струва да се обърне внимание и който, лично при мен, забавяше темпа на четене, за да успея да осмисля всички нюанси на преживяванията на различните герои.
Няма да навлизам в подробностите на историята, защото смятам че всеки трябва да я изживее за себе си и да я пречупи през собствения си опит, но искам да споделя какво ми допадна в цялостната идея на „Странност на ума”. И това са най-вече разсъжденията върху съществените въпроси - дали онова, което ни поднася животът, е чак толкова по-лошо от онова, което ние държим да постигнем на всяка цена и най-вече - способни ли сме да оценим щастието, когато го имаме?
Обективизмът при рисуването на общата картина си остава водещ за автора – той ни показва фактите, без да издава морални присъди кое е правилно и кое не и ни оставя сами да преценим личната си позиция.
Кое е различното в „Странност на ума” в сравнение с другите романи на Памук?
Първо, действието е една идея по-бързо, отколкото е характерно за него. Второ, виждаме искрици на хумор, редки, но за това пък още по-ценни у писател на всеобхватната меланхолия, какъвто е Памук. И не на последно място – в този роман имаме щастие. Нежно, тихо, ненатрапчиво, но истинско ежедневно щастие. Това е толкова нехарактерно за познатия ни тъжен, минорен Памук, че ме изпълни с истинска радост. Искрено уважавам утвърдените автори, които биха могли да си позволят да пишат както и за каквото си пожелаят, които въпреки това виждат някои от слабостите си и работят върху тях. Точно това е направил и Орхан Памук в „Странност на ума”.
А кое е общото с останалите му произведения?
Любимият Истанбул разбира се, защото без него ние просто няма как да пристъпим в света на автора. Но също така тук са почтеността и обективността на Мевлют, тук е постоянно задавният въпрос „Редно ли е да постъпя така?”, любопитството към живота във всичките му форми, но и интензивният вътрешен диалог и погледа отправен към себе си, които можем да срещнем в редица други романи на Памук. Той няма да се откаже да бъде един от малкото известни турски писатели, които имат смелостта да споменават открито арменския геноцид, нито ще премълчи винаги актуалната тема за ролята на турската жена в съвременното общество.
Добрите, кротките, почтените хора съществуват и винаги ще съществуват, но поради вродената си ненатрапчивост те обикновено биват изтикани в периферията на обществото от агресивната амбиция. В „Странност на ума” Орхан Памук дава глас именно на тези хора. Чуйте ги.
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Emma
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December 29, 2015
It is such a cliche to say that I 'got lost in the story' but if any novel should get this pronouncement from me, this is it. As always, Pamuk writes with a beauty and love for his native Istanbul; yet he is not one to show the city through a rose-tinted lens. The same goes for the people he potrays. Stylistically, the ever increasing build up of detail creates a set of characters and a sense of place that you, the reader, come to know intimately. Not only are you welcomed in to this world (which, for me, is so very different from my own), you become part of it. You see, hear, and smell the city. I know, and understand, Mevlut better than some of my friends and family. For this reason, the book can be exhausing (it took me two months to read), but it is also magical.
However, if you are new to Pamuk, I wouldn't start here. For me, none of his works can eclipse My Name is Red and I always recommend it.
Many thanks to Orhan Pamuk, Faber and Faber, and Netgalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
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