Ottoman Odyssey: Travels Through a Lost Empire

Ottoman Odyssey: Travels Through a Lost Empire

An exploration of the contemporary influence of the Ottoman Empire on the wider world, as the author uncovers the new Ottoman legacy across Europe and the Middle East.

The authorâ€™s odyssey began when she looked beyond Turkeyâ€™s borders for contemporary traces of the Ottoman Empire. Their 800 years of rule ended a century agoâ€”and yet, travelling through twelve countries from Kosovo to Greece to Palestine, she uncovers a legacy thatâ€™s vital and relevant; where medieval ethnic diversity meets twenty-first century nationalismâ€”and displaced people seek new identities.

It's a story of surprises. An acolyte of Erdogan in Christian-majority Serbia confirms the wide-reaching appeal of his authoritarian leadership. A Druze warlord explains the secretive religious faction in the heart of the Middle East. The palimpsest-like streets of Jerusalem's Old Town hint at the Ottoman co-existence of Muslims and Jews. And in Turkish Cyprus, Alev Scott rediscovers a childhood home. In every community, history is present as a dynamic force.

Faced by questions of exile, diaspora and collective memory, Alev Scott searches for answers from the cafes of Beirut to the refugee camps of Lesbos. She uncovers in Erdogan's nouveau-Ottoman Turkey a version of the nostalgic utopias sold to disillusioned voters in Europe and America. And yetâ€”as she relates with compassion, insight, and humorâ€”diversity is the enduring, endangered heart of this fascinating region.
Country USA
Manufacturer Pegasus Books
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2019-05-07
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Pegasus Books
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2019-05-07
Format	Kindle eBook

Ottoman Odyssey: Travels Through a Lost Empire

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