This book is not just a biography of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk but also a history of the early Turkish Republic and the Kemalist reforms. George Gawrych has managed to skilfully synthesize extensive original research and scholarly debates to produce a well-rounded and highly readable work. Richly complemented by images and maps, the book will be appreciated by scholars familiar with Turkish history, as well as students wishing to learn more about Ataturk and the formative years of the Turkish Republic.

Milena Methodieva, Assistant Professor, University of Toronto, Canada

This analytical profile of Turkey's Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, one of the world's preeminent statesmen in the twentieth century, combines the Turkish leader's life story with thematic chapters replete with insights into the man and his time. Informed by original primary sources and up-to-date scholarship and written in lucid prose, the book is both erudite and accessible to the general reader.

Hasan Kayali, Professor, University of California, USA

Professor Gawrych proposes a new line of inquiry and analysis. Instead of writing a conventional biography, he carefully examines the development of Atatürk as a leader. As he rightly emphasizes, this is imperative to understanding and constructing Atatürk as both a soldier and a statesman a major contribution to our knowledge of late Ottoman and early modern Turkish political and intellectual history Atatürk tells us a riveting story, drawn from a staggering wealth of sources through painstaking contextualization and original analysis.

M. Sükrü Hanioglu, Garrett Professor in Foreign Affairs and Professor of Near Eastern Studies, Princeton University, USA