A review by teriboop
Harem: The World Behind the Veil by Alev Lytle Croutier

4.0

This is a really good reference on harems in general and more specifically the harem of the Grand Seraglio/Topkapi Palace in Istanbul. I have read several books and articles on harems and captivity in the early modern Mediterranean and all that I read in Croutier's book did align with other resources. Croutier's view is from a first-person perspective, as a descendent of women involved with the harem in Istanbul. Their exact relationship with the harem did not seem to be completely clear. Croutier goes into detail to describe the women and men that were a part of the Grand Seraglio, what their positions were, details about their work and life, as well as describing the Sultans and Sultanas, the physical structure of the Topkapi Palace, and the decline of the practice of harems. It is a very interesting and eye-opening book that takes away the mysterious, secretive life of the women of harems. It is full of pictures and artwork that Croutier uses as part of her resources...but there is the downside of the book...resources.

It is fair to say that Croutier uses a large amount of primary and secondary sources for her book, the problem is, you don't know what they are. No footnotes, endnotes, etc. There is a bibliography but there are no specific citations that coincide with the narrative. Croutier does mention some sources within her narrative, but I don't know what comes from her first-hand knowledge passed through her ancestors and what is gleaned from other sources.

All in all, I think it is a very good resource if you want to know more about harems, you just have to dig through her bibliography if you want to dive deeper into the subject.