by Rose Macaulay,1957, Paperback edition, 2012, Ferrar Strauss and Cudahay, New York

I read this book because it was on the reading list for our educational vacation to Greece and Turkey.

This book is about a trip to Turkey by a young English girl along with her aunt and an Anglican minister.  While in Turkey her aunt and the Anglican minister take off to Russia leaving the young girl on her own.  She travels around Turkey on a camel and undergoes a variety of experiences.

The young girl evidences an unusually innocent demeanor while possibly being a lot more street smart than she lets on.  She asks herself many questions about various matters which tend to take a lot of potshots at things that don’t seem to add up.  One of her targets in this process is the Anglican Church which seems to be embarking on a folly which is to establish itself as an alternative to Islam in Turkey.  He aunt, on the other hand, is upset about the treatment of women in Turkey, but doesn’t seem to be able to have any impact on correcting the situation.

Our heroine also manages to con an unscrupulous young author who has purloined another individual’s work as her own,.  She uses this as a means of getting him to provide her with free food and drink as well as money.

All of this suggests she isn’t quite as innocent as she puts on.

The book is humorous at times although the ending is somewhat dark.  Although the book becomes a bit tedious, it is mostly fun to read.