“In a colourful survey of a complex, often paradoxical country on the cusp of change, Scott is an open-minded, fresh-eyed reporter”

“Alev Scott presents us with a sincere and straightforward analysis of a country that continues to bewilder many, East and West”

“Chatty, engrossing, modest and gutsy, and in the end surprisingly moving, Turkish Awakening deserves a place with the suncream and sand.”

“Scott’s book could hardly be more timely. In part, it’s a narrative of the author’s personal discovery of a country that she had known from afar all her life from her Turkish mother but where she had never lived. As a consequence she has an insider-outsider eye for telling details ...Turkish Awakening takes its place alongside other essential books about modern Turkey ... It’s also highly readable and often funny.”

“Turkish Awakening is sharply observed and lively: a very good read.”