Orhan Pamuk's New Book "Other Colours"

Here's the Book Review of Orhan Pamuk's Other Colours by Richard Marcus on Blogcritics.org. Judging by what's happening in India Pamuk wrote about the social changes happening in Turkey with increasing conservatism and the straining at the leash of secularism. Though secularism is enshrined in our constitution very often we work against its principles as can be seen in what happened in Gujarat and Bombay during the riots. Excerpt:

Whatever the reasons, Turkey is experiencing profound changes, and reactions there are as good an indication as any of the moderate East's opinion of the West. I can't think of any man more sensitive to, and capable of documenting, these events than Orhan Parmuk, and if you care about the world beyond your borders, you would be remiss not to read every word of this book carefully. Somewhere within lies the secret by which we might all survive the next decade or so as the world's balance of power shifts. Pamuk might not come right out with the answer, but he asks the right questions to put us on the road to discovering it.

I was present when Orhan Pamuk visited Bombay and was interviewed at the British Council auditorium. You could miss him in a crowd as he is quite conservatively dressed and he talks very fast with an accent. I haven't read the book yet, but I mean to. I find his books a bit tedious, but enjoyable after the first half has been huffed and puffed through. Most good writers of fiction mature after the first half of the work has been done away with. Wonder what the reason could be. Right now I am reading the monumental work of Jack Kerouac, "On the Road," which is about his frequent escapades (in a broke and beaten condition) with his friend Neal Cassady.

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