Set in the 16th century at the height of the Ottoman Empire, “The Mapmaker’s Daughter” is the enthralling debut novel by writer Katherine Nouri Hughes, who lives in Princeton. On her deathbed, Queen Mother Nurbanu chronicles her rise from illegitimate Venetian to the most powerful woman in the empire under Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
Nouri Hughes, a 1984 Princeton graduate alumna, will discuss her historical novel Monday, Oct. 9, 4:30 p.m., in Robertson Hall’s Bowl 016 on the Princeton University campus. Her talk will be followed by a book sale and signing.
Hughes has spent much of her career as a speech-writer. She has published two books on K-12 education and been a communications executive in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors, as vice president at Robinson, Lake, Lerer & Montgomery; and as vice president of communications at the Milken Family Foundation. After receiving her master’s degree from Princeton in Near Eastern Studies, Nouri Hughes lived in Egypt and worked at the American University in Cairo. She currently is a member of the board of trustees at Milken Family Foundation and serves on the boards of WNET13, New York’s principal public media provider; the American University in Cairo; and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. She also is a former member of the advisory council of the Near Eastern Studies Department at Princeton.