Bed of Roses: An American Woman's Memoirs from Turkey

">As we were leaving New York Harbour in 1952, I asked my husband what life was really like in Turkey, and he answered thoughtfully; "Where we're going, I think life will not be a bed of roses!" While compiling these notes and dog-eared letters written 50 years ago, my son asked what kind of book this one will be. "A biography, with all the elements of a soap opera," I tell him. "Romance and adventure, danger and suspense, comedy and tragedy, divine inspiration, and in a way, a happy ending." Journal notes from a 30-day voyage on an Istanbul-bound Greek freighter introduce readers to this young American wife, her Turkish husband with his new petroleum engineering degree, and their year-old daughter Hikmet. Full of energy and spirit, the trio set off for a destination on "the edge of the map." More realistically, they are destined for an oil field in southeastern Turkey, where the government is developing its new petroleum industry. Epistles, letters and postcard correspondence with family and friends reveal a marriage of true love, steadfast despite dramatic adversities. Additional notes vividly describe sojourns with relatives in Istanbul and the Black Sea hometown, and nearly a decade of living in a remote region of Kurdish villages and oil rigs. The author's first impressions, some initially naive viewpoints and negative reactions, occur at a time when "culture shock" was not a commonly understood concept. In her own way, she gradually learns to adjust to cultural differences, and ultimately ensconces herself as a permanent member of a large and loving Turkish family.Malkoc, Anna Maria is the author of 'Bed of Roses: An American Woman's Memoirs from Turkey', published 2005 under ISBN 9781589092860 and ISBN 1589092864.