Snow

A Novel

By: Orhan Pamuk

Narrated by: John Lee

“A great and almost irresistibly beguiling . . . novelist. . . . [Snow is] enriched by . . . mesmerizing mixes: cruelty and farce, poetry and violence, and a voice whose timbres range from a storyteller’s playfulness to the dark torment of an explorer, lost.”–The New York Times

An exiled poet named Ka returns to Turkey and travels to the forlorn city of Kars. His ostensible purpose is to report on a wave of suicides among religious girls forbidden to wear their head scarves. But Ka is also drawn by his memories of the radiant Ipek, now recently divorced.
Amid blanketing snowfall and universal suspicion, Ka finds himself pursued by figures ranging from Ipek’s ex-husband to a charismatic terrorist. A lost gift returns with ecstatic suddenness. A theatrical evening climaxes in a massacre. And finding God may be the prelude to losing everything else. Touching, slyly comic, and humming with cerebral suspense, Snow is of immense relevance to our present moment.

Easy voice to listen to

I enjoyed listening to this audio version of Snow while I read along in my library book. Having an audio book available for this long book really helps the reader to understand what is happening and keep up with this long and complex story. John Lee’s voice is very easy to listen to and the audio quality is excellent.

the mood of Kars

part Kafka, part Dostoevsky, it is more than the sum of its parts. This is a great novel that is easily the rival of any great novel from now or the past. it was stupendous, and we will never forget Kars, Snow, Ipek, Blue and Ka.

Excellent Insight into the Melancholy of Love Lost

Orhan Pamuk masterfully illustrates the fate of one whom misses his last chance for love. This tragedy is set in a polarized political and religious climate, that lends excitement and illumination to the underlying character analysis.

The book is not one you can turn up to 3x speed and breeze through. I struggled a little with some of the themes, but at the end of the day I really enjoyed this unique world presented in Snow. The story twists and turns and finds truth along the way!

bruceagain

the literary value is great but the subject is maudlin. Good political commentary mixed with human situation.

The Mystery of the Turkish Mind

I found the book to be a window into the mystery of the Turkish mind as it wrestles with Islam. Set in a snow storm, it is haunting and surreal throughout. It may take a couple chapters to get into so be patient.