One of the wonderful things about reading books is that occasionally you get to read about something from a whole different perspective than the one you are exposed to normally. Our media report on the world from the perspective of our own society, which makes sense, as they have to represent the philosophies of those who buy their publications. But that gives us only one perception of events, only half a conversation, one side of the story. When we work up the nerve to leave our insulated shores and read something from a point of view other than the one that appears nightly on our television or continually in our mass media, it can be both a shock to our systems and an eye-opening experience.

For those who follow international events, i.e. the world outside the sphere of most Americans' interest, one of the bigger stories has been Turkey's application to join the European Union (EU). There's a lot of history between Turkey and Europe, dating back to the days of the Crusades, when the Europeans tried to reclaim the territory they called the Holy Land but the Turks called home. Open warfare only ended with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War One and the capture of Jerusalem by the British.

Although mostly Muslim by population, the modern Turkish state has always taken pride in being secular, with complete separation of church and state. But the West's mistrust of the East, including Turkey, persists. In part, this is caused by what seems to be a state of continual political unrest in Turkey (the most recent coup having taken place in the 1980s) and the recent strong showing of non-secular parties in various elections.

Therefore, the stories we do get in the news about the proposed entry of Turkey into the EU all express European concerns. Now, there is no denying that the concerns about human rights and religious tolerance can't be ignored, but what about opinions from the other side? Do we even know the people of Turkey, or anything about their country, their society, and how they go about their days? What image do we have of them, if any at all?

This is where literature can help fill the gaps in our awareness, especially if the writer in question is a recent Nobel Prize laureate whose political independence is unquestioned. Orhan Pamuk's newest release Other Colours (published by Random House Canada through its imprint Knopf Canada) may not be the definitive book on the opinions and views of the Turkish people, but it represents a perspective that we rarely see.

I have the impression that giving Westerners a Turkish perspective might have been Mr. Pamuk's intention with this book, because of the sections he's divided it into. He starts off with short essays under the title "Living and Worrying," which detail his day-to-day existence with family and friends. Predominant in this section are descriptions of adventures he has with his daughter, and the earthquake of 1999 that shattered Turkey.