Chapters 1-3

First, dear Silver Hoody, there are 59 chapters in this book. As we are reading 3 per week, my bet is that you will be able to catch up with us quickly when your book arrives. Is it not available on Kindle? Perhaps you will reconsider your decision not to read along with us.Regardless, thank you for your comments. I too have heard visitors say that the country is fascinating as being a crossroads of culture, religion and history. Perhaps we can visit Turkey together some day?

I am picking up several recurring themes in this book: dark/light and repeated references to snow (pg 7, 9, 16) and blindness. Will watch for how these develop as we read along.

On pg 5 Elegant says "my death conceals an appalling conspiracy against our religion, our traditions and the way we see the world." I think that is the underlying idea for the whole story.

We learn a little about Islamic law and teachings: pg4-"I have not been buried and therefore my soul has not completely left my body."--a corpse must be given proper burial rites before the soul is released. So someone must discover he has been murdered and someone must give a proper burial and with this, Elegant EXTRAPOLATES that someone must revenge his murder.

In Chapter 2 we meet the character Black who was invited back to Istanbul after a 12 year absence to help work on the secret book being created for the Sultan. Because he has been away for 12 years, we get to see through his eyes how things have changed since he was last in Istanbul: rising prices, immorality, inflation, crime, theft, fires, plaque, endless wars with Persians (sound familiar?). On pg 9 he says it is a "time of straying from the path of the Prophet"--disregard for the strictures of the Koran; tolerance toward Christians; open sale of wine; playing musical instruments.

Black has heard the cleric Nusret, who claims to be a direct descendant of the Great Prophet, attributes all the catastrophes that have befallen Istanbul on the influx of immigrants and poor, perhaps refugees?, from other lands "dragging us toward absolute degradation (pg9). (sound familiar?)

Black briefly mentions (pg 8) the growing power of foreign powers: Flemish and Venetians.(sound familiar?) We will watch for more developments on this theme.

But how fundamentally solid is Black himself? It seems that Istanbul is not the only thing that has changed in the past 12 years. He is easily lured by the melodious sound of the lute to the coffeehouse where he sits and listens to the tales told by the Dog. Didn't he learn from the fundamentalist cleric Husret Hoja that,"the Great Prophet did not partake of coffee because he knew it dulled the intellect." Therefore it is EXTRAPOLATED that coffee is prohibited by the Prophet.

Although the Koran does not specifically prohibit the depiction of human figures in art, that prohibition was EXTRAPOLATED and enforced through literal interpretation. Black tells us he left behind his childhood love in Istanbul 12 years ago. Because he had no depiction or drawing of her, his "beloved's face has long since escaped me." Although he struggled to remember what she looked like, he slowly forgot her and left that love behind. This theme of depiction of the human image will reoccur in our reading.

Chapter 3: We get a preview glimpse of the black dog in chapter 2 (pg7). When Black visits the family graves he sees the black dog wagging its tail in friendship. In Chapter 3 we learn more about the dog. We find out that dogs don't make mistakes, only humans do. Dogs know who deserves to be bitten. Clerics despise dogs because the Prophet liked cats--therefore it has been EXTRAPOLATED that must mean the Prophet hates dogs. So it is further EXTRAPOLATED that if you are a follower of the Prophet you, too, hate dogs. People who frequent coffeehouses and those who dance actually listen to and believe what dogs tell them. And did you catch the part where the dog says that in spite of what Husret Hoja preaches, coffee is good for you in that it sharpens your sight and quickens your thoughts?

WHO DO YOU THINK THE DOG REPRESENTS?

Here is are optional interesting articles on Islamic art (miniatures):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_miniature
http://www.spongobongo.com/EKOM00.htm
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/17/us-art-auction-lslam-idUSTRE72G4RG20110317
http://www.lesartsturcs.org/miniatures/index.html

Jackie/Ray: did you know that there is a wonderful collection of Islamic Miniatures right in your own backyard? The Cleveland Museum of Art has a fabulous collection. Why not take a field trip there to check them out! If you do view them, please share your impressions with us. Thanks!