Leyla: The Black Tulip (Girls of Many Lands)

I ordered all the books for my niece and she loves them all.

I bought this as part of a classroom library I helped my daughter build for her 4th grade class she will be teaching in Honduras. She read all the "Girls of Many Lands" books when she was a young girl and wanted her students to have the opportunity to read them also.

I wanted to reread this book after remembering how much I liked it as a girl. It was still a fun read!

I bought all 5 of the "Girls of Many Lands" books from the same vendor. The information said they were used but in "very good condition". They didn't look used to me. They appeared to be brand new. I was very pleased with my purchase.

Daughter loves the book!

This book, which is about a young girl who ends up in the Sultan of Turkey's Harem, is written for middle school kids, but even as an adult I found it fascinating and absorbing. Laleena, a young Georgian girl, sells herself to help her family-and ends up in the Harem of Sultan Ahmed. There she is trained in culture and etiquette-and apprenticed to the Mistress of Flowers, who is in charge of the Harem gardens. Her name is changed to Layla. Over time she meets new friends, gets to use her talents in art and tulip growing-and attempts to produce a black tulip for an important festival. She also dreams and hope to see her family again one day. This book is highly educational. Most Harem literature plays up the sex and intrigue that DID go on in the palace, but this book shows the reader what actual, everyday life was like for the girls who lived there. It was rather like a strict boarding school. The girls had classes, worked, and kept busy. Life was very routine-and most of the ladies never even MET the Sultan, except on feast days. This book HINTS at some of the nastier aspects of the Harem, and it doesn't tell the reader why the eunuchs weren't exactly men. But despite the fact that the book was written for younger people, the fascinating life and customs of the Harem-as well as the interesting young heroine- makes this book enjoyable for all ages

Part of a "Girls of Many Lands" series, this volume tells of a girl from the Caucasus who is sold into a sultan's harem in Istanbul. It is set during the Ottoman Empire's brief Tulip Period-a golden age-in the early 1700s. Croutier possesses excellent credentials for interpreting Turkey's cultural history for young readers. Raised in Turkey, she has written two novels (adult level) set in that country, as well as the non-fictional "Harem: The World Behind the Veil." In "Leyla," the protagonist spends her early years in the Caucasus, learning to paint from her artist-father and to garden from her mother. When war broke out between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, Leyla's father was mustered into the army and is now assumed missing. Leyla believes she will keep her mother and three siblings from starving by selling herself to men claiming they'll find her a wealthy husband-in far-off Istanbul. Leyla soon learns she has been sold into slavery; she is eventually purchased to become part of the sultan's harem. At the sumptuous Topkapi Palace, she is assigned to work in the flower gardens. The ending is marred by an incredulous array of serendipitous happenings. A handsome, young prince befriends Leyla and arranges for her to teach art. During the Tulip Festival, she wins the sultan's favor as well as a hefty prize for her green thumb. Then she learns her father is alive and working in the palace! And much more! Despite this, the story is engaging and does provide a good picture of life in a harem, where women are physically protected, even pampered, yet deprived of basic freedoms and subject to the jealousies and intrigues of a highly politicized setting.

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.