Leyla: The Black Tulip (Girls of Many Lands)
by Alev Lytle Croutier
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Book Summary Information
Author: Alev Lytle CroutierEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-09
ISBN: 1584858311
Number of pages: 196
Publisher: American Girl
Book Reviews of Leyla: The Black Tulip (Girls of Many Lands)
Book Review: Fantastic, as perfect and beautiful as any tulip
Summary: 5 Stars
For over a year I have anxiously awaited the release of this installment in the Girls of Many Lands series. About 4 weeks ago I finally got it and devoured it! It is one of my personal favorites in the 8-book series and I highly recommend. The story opens upon 12-year-old Laleena, the daughter of a Georgian artist. Ever since a war broke out involving the neighboring Ottoman Empire, Laleena's father has been missing. Without his financial support, Laleena, her mother, and her brother, Cengiz, have been searching for opportunities to raise money. While doing so one day, Laleena and her brother happen upon a meadow scattered with unfamiliar flowers--tulips. Gathering as many bulbs as possible through trips to the meadows, Cengiz and Laleena become experts in growing these flowers that became a phenomenon around the time. Holland even almost went broke when they bought tulips from Georgia and the Ottoman Empire! Well, Laleena and her brother raise money by selling some bulbs and flowers, but that isn't enough. At a town festival one day, Laleena catches the eye of a group of mysterious men, who also catch her eye. Turning out to be men who are supposedly looking for women to be paid to marry men in the great Turkish city of Istanbul, the Ottoman capital, Laleena sells herself to these men to raise money. However, she soon finds out the terrible mistake she's made. Spending weeks in a ship's hold she finds out the truth, she is to be sold as a slave. She befriends a young girl, named Lena, whom she becomes a guardian over. After weeks in the suffocating hold, the ship arrives in Istanbul, where Laleena has the luck to be sold as a slave to the royal harem at Topkapi Palace. It is here that we dive into the life of the harem. Every movement, every piece of art, and every gesture has its own meaning. Laleena is re-named Leyla and is assigned to work in the gardens of the harem. She befriends Belkis, a fellow Georgian, who trains her in the rules and regulations of harem life. Leyla's life in the harem is scattered with fear and sadness. From the shocking death of the taster, Ceylan, to Leyla's punishments after lying to the Mistress of the Household when she was painting, to Leyla sneaking into a royal garden party, which could have ended in her death. However, this book is also blessed with many happy moments, including the happy ending, which is too good to mention here. The only thing I somewhat disagreed with about this book is that Leyla was able to make a black tulip. This is virtually impossible. People have been trying to do it for centuries and scientists today have proven that a black tulip cannot be made. I still found the 'black tulip scene' in the book a happy part in the heartwarming ending, but I wish it were a little bit more realistic. There was also another problem. It is known, and I believe even mentioned in the book, that slavery of Muslims is forbidden, and not one harem girl was allowed to be Muslim. But there are references that Leyla is Muslim, as is Belkis, and they both end up in the harem. I don't get it. I was also a little sad to find out that Leyla would have gone to the Palace of Tears by the time she was in her 20's, as the padishah she was a harem girl under died in the 1730's. However, I still highly recommend this book and I will treasure it in my vast book collection.
Also, I found it interesting that Alev Lytle Croutier's grandmother lived in the last Ottoman harem! I hope to read Ms. Croutier's other harem books someday.
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