Notes on a Foreign Country

Notes on a Foreign Country documents journalist Suzy Hansen's move from New York to Istanbul in 2007 and her subsequent transformation in understanding American power and identity. Through reporting across Turkey, Greece, Egypt, and Afghanistan, Hansen reexamines her own background and assumptions as an American abroad. The narrative tracks Hansen's decade of living in Turkey as she investigates how other nations perceive and experience American influence. Her research spans modern Turkish history, the Cold War, and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, combining interviews, historical analysis, and personal reflection. Hansen interweaves her experiences teaching American literature to Turkish students with her growing awareness of how American exceptionalism shaped her worldview. She examines key historical moments and cultural shifts that reveal the complex relationship between Turkey and the United States. The book presents a critique of American innocence and explores how citizens of powerful nations can become blind to their country's impact on others. Through her own process of discovery, Hansen raises questions about national identity, power, and the responsibility to understand history from multiple perspectives.

Readers describe Hansen's memoir as a perspective-shifting examination of American power and privilege through her experiences living in Turkey. Many reviewers note the book helped them question their assumptions about America's role in the world. Readers appreciated: - Raw honesty about confronting personal biases - Detailed research and historical context - Balance of personal narrative with political analysis - Clear writing style that makes complex topics accessible Common criticisms: - Too focused on negative aspects of US foreign policy - Some readers found Hansen's self-criticism excessive - Middle sections drag with historical details - Limited scope beyond Turkey/Middle East region Ratings: Goodreads: 4.0/5 (2,100+ ratings) Amazon: 4.3/5 (180+ ratings) Notable reader comment: "This book made me uncomfortable in all the right ways. It challenges the American exceptionalism we've internalized." - Goodreads reviewer Most critical review: "The author's guilt and shame about being American overshadows potentially interesting insights." - Amazon reviewer

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🔹 Suzy Hansen moved to Istanbul in 2007 on a writing fellowship, planning to stay for a year, but ended up making Turkey her home for over a decade, fundamentally changing her perspective on America's role in the world. 🔹 The book's title was inspired by James Baldwin's essay "Stranger in the Village," which explores similar themes of Americans abroad confronting their own cultural assumptions. 🔹 Hansen interviewed dozens of Turkish citizens about their views on American foreign policy, discovering that many remembered details about U.S. interventions that most Americans had forgotten or never learned. 🔹 The author's investigation of the 1953 CIA-backed coup in Iran, which she knew nothing about before moving abroad, became a pivotal moment in her understanding of American influence in the Middle East. 🔹 The book won the Overseas Press Club's Cornelius Ryan Award for Best Non-fiction Book on International Affairs and was a New York Times Notable Book of 2017.