Turkey Unveiled - Softcover

Pope, Nicola; Pope, Hugh

3.5

163 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1585675814 ISBN 13: 9781585675814

Publisher: Abrams Press, 2004

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The definitive book on Turkey's history, completely revised and updated. Hugh and Nicole Pope have comprehensively updated their definitive history of modern Turkey, Turkey Unveiled. Tracing the rise of the country that transformed itself in the twentieth century from an agrarian society to an affluent, prominent republic, this new edition also includes new photos, maps, and key information on Turkey's new-found prominent position in current global affairs, as evidenced by its vital role as a moderate Islamic government during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Nicole and Hugh Pope, who speak fluent Turkish and have reported from Turkey for over a decade, provide a rich mosaic of contemporary Turkey and its formative past. Combining expert analysis with keen understanding of a culture long misunderstood by the West, Turkey Unveiled provides insights for both the general reader and the millions of people who have made Turkey a top tourist destination.

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Review:

Turkey, write journalists Nicole and Hugh Pope in this well-made narrative history, is a land that defies easy categorization, a melange of elements "European, Western, Eastern, Islamic, fascistic, anarchic" that has always been something of an enigma to outsiders. After decades of stagnation, it is now emerging as a nation of central importance in Eurasian geopolitics, as it was in the days of the Ottoman Empire. The authors describe the growth of the modern Turkish state in the aftermath of World War I, when that empire, defeated by the Allied powers, splintered into some 30 independent states. Led by Mustafa Kemal Atat�rk and his so-called Young Turks, the postwar state sought to curb the growth of Islamic fundamentalism, to introduce some measure of democracy into a formerly autocratic system, and to secure a place for Turkey in the constellation of world powers. They were only partly successful; Atat�rk, the authors contend, "led Turkey on the path of Westernization, but left it stranded half-way to full democratization because, deep down, he was not a democrat." Now, after years of military rule, the Turkish government is making efforts both to continue that democratization and to secure influence among the emerging Central Asian republics of the former Soviet Union. The nation, the authors write, is now the arena of conflict between left and right, fundamentalist and secularist, nationalist and cosmopolitan: it stands at a crossroads both political and historical. Westerners, they suggest, would do well to pay closer attention to Turkish affairs, and their book is a fine contribution toward that end. --Gregory McNamee

About the Author:

Nicole Pope has worked for the Red Cross in Iraq and Lebanon and currently reports for Le Monde and international radio stations in Turkey. Hugh Pope read Persian and Arabic at Oxford, and has reported for the Independent, Los Angeles Times, BBC, and Reuters. He currently runs the news bureau in Istanbul for the Wall Street Journal.

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