Teoman Kenn Küçük

Sea Change is a deeply researched book full of information on textile production and consumption in the Ottoman Empire from 1400-1800. For the layperson or even for historians of the period looking to add an extra dimension to their understanding, it is perhaps too focused on the minutiae of textiles while not giving enough weight to how these textiles can tell us more about the history surrounding them. For art historians or historians whose research has led them to specific questions regarding Ottoman textiles, however, this book will certainly be a treasure trove to return to time and again.

Turkish History and Culture in India can be understood as having erred on the side of global history, rather than choosing a very definite range of research to which more definite answers can be found, as the chapters represent a wide array of topics and approaches. This gives rise to a book that bears more questions than answers–but this is by no means a bad thing. The field overall is understudied, and it is particularly in these global connections that this neglect is most striking. By gambling on big rather than small, the authors have produced a valuable collection of scholarship that promises leads and new questions to inspire a broad range of readers, whether their interests be Turkish identity, the Islamicate world, Indian history, cultural syncretism, or any of the other myriad entryways opened here.