Turk author wins Nobel prize

October 13, 2006

Pamuk is the first non-American to have won so far in this year's Nobels after Americans scooped prizes for medicine, chemistry, physics and economics. His best-known novels include "My Name is Red" and "Snow", works that focus on the clash between past and present, East and West, secularism and Islamism -- problems at the heart of Turkey's struggle to develop. Although some say that his politics could have influenced the Nobel committee, critics say that Pamuk's writing is worthy of admiration and of the distinction he has received. His work has been translated into many languages and attracted international fans.