I still think about my favorite book from January. What a fascinating read.
#12booksof2025 @TheEllieMo
TheEllieMo This is one I‘ve not heard of before; it looks very interesting. 6d
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My Name Is Red | 
I still think about my favorite book from January. What a fascinating read.
#12booksof2025 @TheEllieMo
pickShort description: The book begins with a murder in Istanbul 1591. The aftermath is told from the perspective of several sometimes unreliable narrators.
But it's so much more complex. It explores art history and cultural history. It explores the influence of the West on the Ottoman Empire. It's creative, ambitious, and quite simply a masterpiece. The quote above is from my favorite chapter.
I read this for a personal #readtheworld challenge.
pickI‘m ever so slowly making my way through my #10BeforetheEnd stack.
This was a dense and thought provoking read. Translated from the Turkish and set in the 16th century during the Ottoman Empire, this reflects a culture which is largely unknown to me. It does have a murder mystery as its overarching plot, but that‘s just a framework used to delve into larger philosophical questions about art and religion.
#WhereAreYouMonday
This Monday finds me in 16th century Istanbul among the scribes, miniaturists, gilders, and other artists of the empire who have been commissioned to create book which will also be a work of art for the sultan. Only 50 pages in, but definitely getting The Name of the Rose vibes.
#AuldLangSpine
Here are a few things about me @TheBookHippie Excited for January to start!
@monalyisha
“Perhaps one day someone from a distant land will listen to this story of mine. Isn't this what lies behind the desire to be inscribed in the pages of a book? Isn't it just for the sake of this delight that sultans and viziers proffer bags of gold to have their histories written?”
#letterM #alphabetgame @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
How the ear that is drawn before the hand has accumulated any knowledge, before the artist has weighed and considered what it is doing.... will always be a flaw. Precisely because it is a flaw, or imperfection, it will vary from miniaturist to miniaturist. That is, it amounts to a signature..... this method... is known by many khans, shahs and sultans who fund book arts workshops as the 'courtesan method.'
Furthermore, it is kept secret...
The reason we don't like anything innovative is that there is truly nothing new worth liking.
It's not only for money and favor that we kneel before our work from morning to evening, continuing by candlelight through the night to the point of blindness and sacrifice ourselves for pictures and books, it's to escape the prattle of others, to escape community...
Ottoman Miniature Painters (Wikipedia)
Lunchtime office read: I really want to finish this one!
We‘re under lockdown but after such a full day at work my mind deserves a treat. It‘s freezing cold too🥶 hence the yummy latte 😋
#sunday #allbooked #newread
pickIstanbul, 1591. A shadow “commando“ of illuminators is tasked to produce drawings for an important book. Except for a few people, no one has the full picture of the content of that book, which fabrication is kept secret. Everything goes as planned, until one of the craftsmen is found dead in a well, soon to be followed by the head of the project. The nephew starts the enquiry into these murders. Sometimes too packed with details, but great read !
#wordsofOctober #Red I think I found this at a library sale( remember them?) it looked good but it‘s been sitting on the TBR for quite awhile.If I am remembering correctly I think @Billypar really liked it .😁
pickA rich, complex novel that transports us into the world of miniaturists in 16th century Istanbul. It meaningfully explores the European influence on Islamic art & each of the multiple narrative chapter is filled with old stories. Parts art & history, also a love story, the murder investigation is just a vehicle to set in motion the philosophical debate of art & religion, the conflict & struggle to accept influence ⬇️
#ReadingEurope2020 #Turkey
This book is proving to be rather dense and complex, steep in cultural histories, but it has some beautiful sentences and I find it absorbing.
#currentread
pickMost 'literary mysteries' wind up being regular literary fiction with just a touch of mystery. At first glance that's true for this one too, except it has the soul of a mystery novel. For me, it's the best of both worlds: dizzying poetry and mad associations about the art of miniaturist painting in 16th century Istanbul as the whole art universe is transforming, with a whodunit at the center that propels the story forward. I ate this up: so fun!
#currentread
I've found the perfect book for our present moment. I'm almost halfway through and completely immersed. The news doesn't stand a chance.
Starting the next read off of my keyword challenge, this weekend. Keyword is red!
If I were to advise them that they could extend this period by drinking coffee, I know quite well that some, because it was Satan speaking, would do the exact opposite and refuse coffee entirely, or worse yet, stand on their heads and try pouring it into their asses.
"I am not, in the least, familiar with Death", said the miniaturist.
"We all know Death", said the old man.
"We fear it, but we don't know it."
"Then it falls to you to draw that fear", said the old man.
pickA great mystery that encapsulated people‘s list for power and fame through the viewpoint of Arabian culture.
pickChallenging historical fiction set in the Golden Age in the Ottoman Empire. Pamuk hits on the purpose of art, philosophy, the nature of storytelling, parable, women and artists in society, east v west... all with exquisite writing.
panLong book, long review.
Glad to be done with it.
#ReadHarder - a book in which an animal or inanimate object is a point-of-view character
#ReadHarder2019
Replenishment for my #Asia Fiction Display 😁! Have you read any of these?!
#LitsyLovesLibraries #MrBooksDisplays
Just started this as my next #ReadHarder book. It's strange and it'll take a while to get my head around it... But in the meantime, there are some very nice turns of phrase
#ReadHarder2019
#championsofredwine #TimbitTunes @TheKidUpstairs @Cinfhen
Enjoying a Cabernet on this Friday evening and gazing at a relevant vintage from my TBR shelf, which I will definitely be uncorking at some point in 2019.
And in music news, The New Pornographers are such a great band: so so many good songs. I'll drink to them! 🍷 (but avoid a *slow descent into alcoholism* 😉).
so-soThis could have been a beautiful story, but it‘s so very impersonal. For me it was an account of ‘this happened and than that happened‘. I‘m still not sure whether the author wanted to ridicule the characters, make us hate then or feel sorry for them. Not a single part of the story touched me, the characters felt unlikable and unstable.
Although I‘ve seen very positive reviews, I wouldn‘t recommend this book to anyone.
Found a perfect spot to read today🤩 It was a bit chilly, but the view was worth it!
#SeptinBooks Day 27: #SetinAnotherCountry
After some distractions I‘m finally getting back to this book. It‘s set in Istanbul, but I haven‘t really gotten to know the city. It‘s seems to have been the logical setting and nothing more...
#SeptinBooks Day 18: #HardCopiesvsEBooks
I love them both! Ebooks, cause they don‘t make my bag so heavy and hard copies cause they feel right, smell perfect etc etc😁
Just finished my ebook this morning, so will get back to my paperback now😊
pickA mind boggling journey of mystery, love in the ancient Islamic world of art.
Piqued my interest in learning what Islamic art meant and what the modern world and art lost with its departure.
#septinbooks18 Day 6: #CurrentReadThruEmojis
Me, while reading: 😳🧐🤩🤓
The book: 🎨💘📝📜📖🕋🕌👳🏻♂️🧕🏼
Seeking landmark approval (Grand Bazaar, Istanbul, Turkey) for #backpackEurope from @JenP and @BookwormM:
The book is set in Istanbul and the character is walking from the Column of Constantine through the markets to the mosques. The character (Black) is naming lots of different sellers across the marketplace. The markets are geographically in the Grand Bazaar, though old names for everything are mentioned rather than our current tourist names.
