'Exploring the nature and historical roots of Turkish nationalism, this book speaks to cutting-edge scholarship across several disciplines and geographies and makes remarkable contributions to the literature on the highly contested issues of nationhood, nationalism, and national belonging. Bayar's approach departs from dominant tendencies in sociology and political science in several key ways. Rather than focus on the causes of nation building, Bayar offers a detailed analysis of the process of nation building, which traces the shifting and sometimes contradictory visions of the political elite to reveal the importance of unintended and non-strategic factors. The combination of her methodological approach and a rich sociological and political theory of nation-building renders the book significant.' - Berna Turam, Middle East Center for Peace, Culture & Development, Northeastern University, USA 'It is often assumed that Ataturk founded modern Turkey in one go, on the back of military victory. Yesim Bayar's comprehensive account of the early years of the Republic shows that this was not the case. This is a brilliant account of the terms that defined political debate over language, education and the nature of the nation, and it is an important contribution of comparative historical studies in general.' - John A.

Hall, McGill University, Canada.