The Time Regulation Institute

Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar · 1901–1962 · Turkey

Originally Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü (Turkish) · translated by Maureen Freely and Alexander Dawe

Why it matters

A bumbling narrator helps found a state bureaucracy dedicated solely to synchronizing every clock in Turkey to Western time, its absurd growth satirizing Atatürk-era reform from the inside. Melancholy hides under every joke: Pamuk's acknowledged master at his sharpest.

At a glance

Digressive, ironic narration and dense allusions to Ottoman-to-republican Turkish history reward slow reading.