In the tradition of "A Year in Provence" and "Under the Tuscan Sun", acclaimed English travel writer Tahir Shah shares a highly entertaining account of making an exotic dream come true. By turns hilarious and harrowing, here is the story of his family’s move from the gray skies of London to the sun-drenched city of Casablanca, where Islamic tradition and African folklore converge–and nothing is as easy as it seems….

Inspired by the Moroccan vacations of his childhood, Tahir Shah dreamed of making a home in that astonishing country. At age thirty-six he got his chance. Investing what money he and his wife, Rachana, had, Tahir packed up his growing family and bought Dar Khalifa, a crumbling ruin of a mansion by the sea in Casablanca that once belonged to the city’s caliph, or spiritual leader.

With its lush grounds, cool, secluded courtyards, and relaxed pace, life at Dar Khalifa seems sure to fulfill Tahir’s fantasy–until he discovers that in many ways he is farther from home than he imagined. For in Morocco an empty house is thought to attract jinns, invisible spirits unique to the Islamic world. The ardent belief in their presence greatly hampers sleep and renovation plans, but that is just the beginning. From elaborate exorcism rituals involving sacrificial goats to dealing with gangster neighbors intent on stealing their property, the Shahs must cope with a new culture and all that comes with it. 

Endlessly enthralling, "The Caliph’s House" charts a year in the life of one family who takes a tremendous gamble. As we follow Tahir on his travels throughout the kingdom, from Tangier to Marrakech to the Sahara, we discover a world of fierce contrasts that any true adventurer would be thrilled to call home.

The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca

Set in the medieval city of Marrakesh and the majestic kasbahs of the High Atlas mountains, `Lords of the Atlas' tells the extraordinary story of the Madani and T'hami el Glaoui, warlord brothers who carved out a feudal fiefdom in southern Morocco in the early twentieth century. Quislings of the French colonial administration, they combined the aggression of gangland mobsters with the opulence of hereditary Indian princes, and ruled with a mixture of flamboyance and terror. On returning from the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, T'hami ordered the severed heads of his enemies to be mounted on his gates. Yet in 1956, when the French left Morocco, the Glaoua regime toppled like a pack of cards.A classic story of history, intrigue, mystery, and action.

Lords of the Atlas: The Rise and Fall of the House of Glaoua, 1893-1956

Tahir Shah’s "The Caliph’s House", describing his first year in Casablanca, was hailed by critics and compared to such travel classics as A Year in Provence and Under the Tuscan Sun. Now Shah takes us deeper into the heart of this exotic and magical land to uncover mysteries that have been hidden from Western eyes for centuries.…

In this entertaining and penetrating book, Tahir sets out on a bold new journey across Morocco that becomes an adventure worthy of the mythical Arabian Nights.

As he wends his way through the labyrinthine medinas of Fez and Marrakesh, traverses the Sahara sands, and tastes the hospitality of ordinary Moroccans, Tahir collects a dazzling treasury of traditional stories, gleaned from the heritage of A Thousand and One Nights. The tales, recounted by a vivid cast of characters, reveal fragments of wisdom and an oriental way of thinking that is both enthralling and fresh. A link in the chain of scholars and teachers who have passed these stories down for centuries like a baton in a relay race, Shah reaches layers of culture that most visitors hardly realize exist, and eventually discovers the story living in his own heart.

Along the way he describes the colors, characters, and the passion of Morocco, and comes to understand why it is such an enchanting land. From master masons who labor only at night to Sufi wise men who write for soap operas, and Tuareg guides afflicted by reality TV, "In Arabian Nights" takes us on an unforgettable journey, shining a light on facets of a society that are normally left in darkness.

In Arabian Nights: A Caravan of Moroccan Dreams

In this classic work of psychological terror, Paul Bowles examines the ways in which Americans apprehend an alien culture--and the ways in which their incomprehension destroys them. The story of three American travelers adrift in the cities and deserts of North Africa, The Sheltering Sky is at once merciless and heartbreaking in its compassion. It etches the limits of human reason and intelligence--perhaps even the limits of human life --when they touch the unfathomable emptiness and impassive cruelty of the desert.

The Sheltering Sky

“A dream of a debut, by turns troubling and glorious, angry and wise.” —Junot Diaz

Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits evokes the grit and enduring grace that is modern Morocco. As four Moroccans illegally cross the Strait of Gibraltar in an inflatable boat headed for Spain, author Laila Lalami asks, What has driven them to risk their lives? And will the rewards prove to be worth the danger? There’s Murad, a gentle, unemployed man who’s been reduced to hustling tourists around Tangier; Halima, who’s fleeing her drunken husband and the slums of Casablanca; Aziz, who must leave behind his devoted wife in hope of securing work in Spain; and Faten, a student and religious fanatic whose faith is at odds with an influential man determined to destroy her future. Sensitively written with beauty and boldness, this is a gripping book about what propels people to risk their lives in search of a better future.

Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits

Set in Fez, Morocco, during that country's 1954 nationalist uprising, "The Spider's House" is perhaps Paul Bowles's most beautifully subtle novel, richly descriptive of its setting, and uncompromising in its characterizations. Exploring once again the dilemma of the outsider in an alien society, and the gap in understanding between cultures—recurrent themes of Paul Bowles's writings—"The Spider's House" is dramatic, brutally honest, and shockingly relevant to today's political situation in the Middle East and elsewhere.

The Spider's House

When her mother decides to take her and her sister away from life as they know it and move to Morocco, a five-year-old English school girl embarks on an adventure-filled romp through northern Africa.

Hideous Kinky

In 1917, amid the turmoil of World War I, Edith Wharton, the author of The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth, travelled to Morocco. A classic of travel writing, In Morocco is her account of this journey through the country's cities and through its deserts. The Ecco Travels edition of In Morocco brings this previously rare and hard-to-obtain Edith Wharton classic back into print after an absence of many decades.

In Morocco

Driven by famine from their home in the Rif, Mohamed's family walks to Tangiers in search of a better life. But his father is unable to find work and grows violent, beating Mohamed's mother and killing his sick younger brother in a moment of mad rage.

On moving to another province Mohamed learns how to charm and steal, and discovers the joys of drugs, sex and alcohol. Proud, insolent and afraid of no-one, Mohamed returns to Tangiers, where he is caught up in the violence of the 1952 independence riots. During a short spell in a filthy Moroccan jail, a fellow inmate kindles Mohamed's life-altering love of poetry.

The book itself was banned in Arab countries for its sexual explicitness. Dar al-Saqi was the first publishing house to publish it in Arabic in 1982, thirty years after it was written, though many translations came out before the Arabic version.

Translated by Paul Bowles.

Mohamed Choukri is one of North Africa's most controversial and widely read authors. At the age of twenty he decided to learn to read and write classical Arabic. He went on to become a teacher and writer, finally being awarded the chair of Arabic Literature at Ibn Batuta College in Tangier.

Paul Bowles, perhaps best known for his novel "The Sheltering Sky", collaborated closely with Choukri on the translation of "For Bread Alone".

The story of Choukri's life is continued in "Streetwise".

For Bread Alone

In this lyrical, hallucinatory novel set in Morocco, Tahar Ben Jelloun offers an imaginative and radical critique of contemporary Arab social customs and Islamic law. "The Sand Child" tells the story of a Moroccan father's effort to thwart the consequences of Islam's inheritance laws regarding female offspring. Already the father of seven daughters, Hajji Ahmed determines that his eighth child will be a male. Accordingly, the infant, a girl, is named Mohammed Ahmed and raised as a young man with all the privileges granted exclusively to men in traditional Arab-Islamic societies. As she matures, however, Ahmed's desire to have children marks the beginning of her sexual evolution, and as a woman named Zahra, Ahmed begins to explore her true sexual identity. Drawing on the rich Arabic oral tradition, Ben Jelloun relates the extraordinary events of Ahmed's life through a professional storyteller and the listeners who have gathered in a Marrakesh market square in the 1950s to hear his tale. A poetic vision of power, colonialism, and gender in North Africa, "The Sand Child" has been justifiably celebrated around the world as a daring and significant work of international fiction.

The Sand Child

When Suzanna Clarke and her husband bought a dilapidated house in the Moroccan town of Fez, their friends thought they were mad. Located in a maze of donkey-trod alleyways, the house - a traditional riad - was beautiful but in desperate need of repair. Walls were in danger of collapse, the plumbing non-existent. While neither Suzanna nor her husband spoke Arabic, and had only a smattering of French, they were determined to restore the building to its original splendour, using only traditional craftsmen and handmade materials. But they soon found that trying to do business in Fez was like being transported back several centuries in time and so began the remarkable experience that veered between frustration, hilarity and moments of pure exhilaration. 

But restoring the riad was only part of their immersion in the rich and colourful life of this ancient city. "A House in Fez" is a journey into Moroccan culture, revealing its day-to-day rhythms, its customs and festivals; its history, Islam, and Sufi rituals; the lore of djinns and spirits; the vibrant life-filled market places and the irresistible Moroccan cuisine. And above all, into the lives of the people - warm, friendly, and hospitable.

Beautifully descriptive and infused with an extraordinary sense of place, this is a compelling account of one couple's adventures in ancient Morocco.

A House in Fez: Building a Life in the Ancient Heart of Morocco

How far would you go to protect the ones you love…when they may not be yours to protect?

When Josh’s longtime partner, Grace, dies in a tragic accident, he is left with a mess of grief—and full custody of her seven-year-old son, Logan. While not his biological father, Josh has been a dad to Logan in every way that counts, and with Grace gone, Logan needs him more than ever.

Wanting to do right by Logan, Josh begins the process of becoming his legal guardian—something that seems suddenly urgent, though Grace always brushed it off as an unnecessary formality. But now, as Josh struggles to find the paperwork associated with Logan’s birth, he begins to wonder whether there were more troubling reasons for Grace’s reluctance to make their family official.

As he digs deeper into the past of the woman he loved, Josh soon finds that there are many dark secrets to uncover, and that the truth about where Logan came from is much more sinister than he could have imagined…

"Tightly paced and brimming with tension, "Her Secret Son" is a heartbreakingly honest portrait of a family on the edge of disaster and a father desperate to hold on to the boy who changed his life."

Her Secret Son

Marrakech is the heart and lifeblood of Morocco’s ancient storytelling tradition. For nearly a thousand years, storytellers have gathered in Jemaa el Fna, the legendary square of the city, to recount ancient folktales and fables to rapt audiences. But this unique chain of oral tradition that has passed seamlessly from generation to generation is teetering on the brink of extinction. The competing distractions of television, movies, and the Internet have drawn the crowds away from the storytellers and few have the desire to learn the stories and continue their legacy. Richard Hamilton has witnessed first-hand the death throes of this rich and captivating tradition and, in the labyrinth of the Marrakech medina, has tracked down the last few remaining storytellers, recording stories that are replete with the mysteries and beauty of the Maghreb.

The Last Storytellers: Tales from the Heart of Morocco

This "wonderful and enchanting" memoir tells the revelatory true story of one Muslim girl's life in her family's French Moroccan harem, set against the backdrop of World War II ("The New York Times Book Review").

 "I was born in a harem in 1940 in Fez, Morocco . . . " 
So begins Fatima Mernissi in this illuminating narrative of a childhood behind the iron gates of a domestic harem. In "Dreams of Trespass", Mernissi weaves her own memories with the dreams and memories of the women who surrounded her in the courtyard of her youth -- women who, without access to the world outside, recreated it from sheer imagination. 

 A beautifully written account of a girl confronting the mysteries of time and place, gender and sex, "Dreams of Trespass" illuminates what it was like to be a modern Muslim woman in a place steeped in tradition.

Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood

Winner of the 1981 Nobel Prize for Literature, Elias Canetti uncovers the secret life hidden beneath Marrakesh’s bewildering array of voices, gestures and faces. In a series of sharply etched scenes, he portrays the languages and cultures of the people who fill its bazaars, cafes, and streets. The book presents vivid images of daily life: the storytellers in the Djema el Fna, the armies of beggars ready to set upon the unwary, and the rituals of Moroccan family life. This is Marrakesh -described by one of Europe’s major literary intellects in an account lauded as "cosmopolitan in the tradition of Goethe" by the New York Times. "A unique travel book," according to John Bayley of the "London Review of Books."

The Voices of Marrakesh: A Record of a Visit

This brilliantly entertaining, insightful classic account of Marrakesh captures the rhythm and spirit of life in the backways of the Medina in the 1950s. First published by John Murray as The Alleys of Marrakesh.

A Year in Marrakesh

A shocking story set in Morocco's desert concentration camps, from the Prix Goncourt-winning novelist. An immediate and critically acclaimed bestseller in France, This Blinding Absence of Light is Tahar Ben Jelloun's crafting of a horrific real-life narrative into a work of fiction. "In this deeply moving novel," says L'Express, "Tahar Ben Jelloun has chosen imagination as the response to inhumanity—the art of writing as the ultimate liberation." He tells the appalling story of the desert concentration camps in which King Hassan II of Morocco held his political enemies. Not until September 1991, under international pressure, was Hassan's regime forced to open these desert hellholes. A handful of survivors—living cadavers who had shrunk by over a foot in height—emerged from the six-by-three-foot cells in which they had been held underground for decades. Working closely with one of the survivors, Ben Jelloun eschewed the traditional novel format and wrote a book in the simplest of language, reaching always for the most basic of words, the most correct descriptions. The result is "a great novel," according to Le Monde, and what Les Échos calls "a book of universal import, addressing all the horrors, past and doubtless future, that man has inflicted on his fellow men."

This Blinding Absence of Light

A gripping memoir that reads like a political thriller--the story of Malika Oufkir's turbulent and remarkable life. Born in 1953, Malika Oufkir was the eldest daughter of General Oufkir, the King of Morocco's closest aide. Adopted by the king at the age of five, Malika spent most of her childhood and adolescence in the seclusion of the court harem, one of the most eligible heiresses in the kingdom, surrounded by luxury and extraordinary privilege. Then, on August 16, 1972, her father was arrested and executed after an attempt to assassinate the king. Malika, her five younger brothers and sisters. and her mother were immediately imprisoned in a desert penal colony. After fifteen years, the last ten of which they spent locked up in solitary cells, the Oufkir children managed to dig a tunnel with their bare hands and make an audacious escape. Recaptured after five days, Malika was finally able to leave Morocco and begin a new life in exile in 1996. A heartrending account in the face of extreme deprivation and the courage with which one family faced its fate, Stolen Lives is an unforgettable story of one woman's journey to freedom.

Stolen Lives: Twenty Years in a Desert Jail

In "Let It Come Down", Paul Bowles plots the doomed trajectory of Nelson Dyar, a New York bank teller who comes to Tangier in search of a different life and ends up giving in to his darkest impulses. Rich in descriptions of the corruption and decadence of the International Zone in the last days before Moroccan independence, Bowles's second novel is an alternately comic and horrific account of a descent into nihilism.

Let it Come Down

A Street in Marrakech: A Personal View of Urban Women in Morocco

The story of an immigrant named Mohammed who has spent forty years in France and is about to retire. Taking stock of his life- his devotion to Islam and to his assimilated children-he decides to return to Morocco, where he spends his life's savings building the biggest house in the village and waits for his children and grandchildren to come be with him. A heartbreaking novel about parents and children, "A Palace in the Old Village" captures the sometimes stark contrasts between old- and new-world values, and an immigrant's abiding pursuit of home.

A Palace in the Old Village

Kit Noonan’s life is stalled: unemployed, twins to help support, a mortgage to pay—and a frustrated wife, who is certain that more than anything else, Kit needs to solve the mystery of his father’s identity. He begins with a visit to his former stepfather, Jasper, a take-no-prisoners Vermont outdoorsman. But it is another person who has kept the secret: Lucinda Burns, wife of a revered senior statesman and mother of Malachy (the journalist who died of AIDS in Glass’s first novel, "Three Junes"). She and her husband are the only ones who know the full story of an accident whose repercussions spread even further when Jasper introduces Lucinda to Kit. Immersing readers in a panorama that stretches from Vermont to the tip of Cape Cod, Glass weaves together the lives of Kit, Jasper, Lucinda and ultimately, Fenno McLeod, the beloved protagonist of "Three Junes" (now in his sixties). An unforgettable novel about the youthful choices that steer our destinies, the necessity of forgiveness, and the surprisingly mutable meaning of family.

And the Dark Sacred Night

Offering a fictional treatment to a Muslim woman's life, here, a personal and family crisis impells the heroine to reexamine traditional cultural attitudes toward women. Both obstacles and support systems change as she actively participates in the struggle for Moroccan independence from France.

Year of the Elephant: A Moroccan Woman's Journey Toward Independence

"The Time In Between" is a word-of-mouth phenomenon that catapulted María Dueñas, a debut author, to the top of Spain's bestseller lists.

This sweeping novel, which combines the storytelling power of "The Shadow of the Wind" with the irresistible romance of "Casablanca", moves at an unstoppable pace. Suddenly left abandoned and penniless in Morocco by her lover, Sira Quiroga forges a new identity. Against all odds she becomes the most sought-after couture designer for the socialite wives of German Nazi officers. But she is soon embroiled in a dangerous political conspiracy as she passes information to the British Secret Service through a code stitched into the hems of her dresses.

The Time in Between

"Their Heads are Green and their Hands are Blue" is an engaging collection of eight travel essays. Except for one essay on Central America, all of these pieces are concerned with locations in the Hindu, Buddhist, or Islamic worlds. A superb and observant traveler, Paul Bowles was a born wanderer who found pleasure in the inaccessible and who cheerfully endures the concomitant hardships with a matter-of-fact humor.

These essays provide us with Paul Bowles' characteristic insightfulness and bring us closer to a world we frequently hear about, but often find difficult to understand.

Their Heads are Green and Their Hands are Blue: Scenes from the Non-Christian World

White Gold: The Extraordinary Story of Thomas Pellow and Islam's One Million White Slaves

On May 16, 2003, fourteen suicide bombers launched a series of attacks throughout Casablanca. It was the deadliest attack in Morocco’s history. The bombers came from the shantytowns of Sidi Moumen, a poor suburb on the edge of a dump whose impoverished residents rarely if ever set foot in the cosmopolitan city at their doorstep. Mahi Binebine’s novel "Horses of God" follows four childhood friends growing up in Sidi Moumen as they make the life-changing decisions that will lead them to become Islamist martyrs.

The seeds of fundamentalist martyrdom are sown in the dirt-poor lives of Yachine, Nabil, Fuad, and Ali, all raised in Sidi Moumen. The boys’ soccer team, The Stars of Sidi Moumen, is their main escape from the poverty, violence, and absence of hope that pervade their lives. When Yachine’s older brother Hamid falls under the spell of fundamentalist leader Abu Zoubeir, the attraction of a religion that offers discipline, purpose, and guidance to young men who have none of these things becomes too seductive to ignore.

Narrated by Yachine from the afterlife, "Horses of God" portrays the sweet innocence of childhood and friendship as well as the challenges facing those with few opportunities for a better life. Binebine navigates the controversial situation with compassion, creating empathy for the boys, who believe they have no choice but to follow the path offered them.


Winner of the 2010 Prix du Roman Arabe and Prix Littéraire Mamounia

"The novel provides context and perspective to often little-explored issues, offering incredible insight into the complex lives of poor boys who are groomed to kill themselves for a cause and commit violent acts in the name of religion. Binebine portrays these young men as supremely human, victims of powers much larger than themselves, and like any Kafkaesque anti-hero, cogs in an incomprehensible and monstrous machine."
--Starred Publishers Weekly

"Moroccan painter, novelist, and former math teacher Binebine (Welcome to Paradise) writes with humor and pathos amid the novel’s grinding tragedy but never allows the narrative to veer into self-pity or cheap sentimentality. The book is based on the 2004 suicide bombings in Casablanca, and Binebine’s unblinking eye for detail makes this a haunting tale." 
--Library Journal

Horses of God

Grand imperial cities, calm desert oases, Mediterranean beaches, and ancient history: experience an incredible crossroads of culture with "Moon Morocco". Inside you'll find:


Flexible itineraries including one week in Marrakesh, retreats to Fez, Casablanca, and the Sahara, mountain excursions, and the four-week best of Morocco

Strategic advice for history and culture buffs, beachgoers, adventure junkies, and more

Top sights and unique experiences: Cook your own traditional tajines in a restored riad, or treat yourself to world-class French cuisine. Trek the soaring peaks and jaw-dropping valleys of Morocco's four mountain ranges (by foot, or by mule!), or relax on miles of idyllic beaches. Sip refreshing mint tea and destress with a customary "hammam", challenge your bartering skills at a busy souk, or explore one of Morocco's nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites

How to experience Morocco like an insider, support local and sustainable businesses, avoid crowds, and respectfully engage with the culture

Insight from Morocco expert Lucas Peters on where to eat, how to get around, and where to stay
Full-color, vibrant photos and detailed maps throughout

Reliable background on the landscape, climate, history, government, and cultural customs and etiquette, plus useful tips on public transportation, car and bike rentals, and air travel

Handy tools including Darija and French phrasebooks, visa information, and accommodations, and travel tips for families, seniors, travelers with disabilities, and LGBTQ travelers
With "Moon Morocco's" practical advice and local know-how, you can plan your trip your way.

Sticking mostly to Marrakesh? Try "Moon Marrakesh &amp; Beyond".

Moon Morocco

Hassan, a storyteller, has gathered listeners in Marrakesh’s fabled Jemaa el Fna to perform his annual re-creation of the night on which two foreigners mysteriously disappeared from the square. But as his audience offers contradicting testimonies, and details transform or dissolve in the haze of memory, the couple takes on an air as enigmatic as their fate, leaving us to wonder whether Hassan is getting closer to the truth or, more disturbingly, is himself part of the mystery.

The Storyteller of Marrakesh: A Novel

The Sultan's Wife

Robin knew Paul wasn’t perfect. But he said they were so lucky to have found each other, and she believed it was true.

In the heady strangeness of Morocco, he is everything she wants him to be – passionate, talented, knowledgeable. She is convinced that it is here she will finally become pregnant.

But when Paul suddenly disappears, and Robin finds herself the prime suspect in the police inquiry, everything changes.

As her understanding of the truth starts to unravel, Robin lurches from the crumbling art deco of Casablanca to the daunting Sahara, caught in an increasingly terrifying spiral from which there is no easy escape.

With his acclaimed ability to write page-turners that also make you think, Douglas Kennedy takes the reader on a roller-coaster journey into a heart of darkness that asks the question: what would you do if your life depended on it?





‘Kennedy is a complete genius when it comes to understanding the minds of stylish but troubled women’ "Daily Mirror"





‘Kennedy is an absolute master at love stories with heart-stopping twists’ "The Times"





‘Kennedy's skill is to send you racing down the slope of sheer story.’ "Esquire "

The Heat of Betrayal

Dune Song

Joining her mother for a holiday in the ancient port city of Tangier, American adventuress Jade del Cameron expects their trip will be far less dangerous than her safaris in East Africa. But soon after their introduction to a group of European tourists, Dona del Cameron goes missing- victim of an apparent kidnapping-and, shockingly, the French authorities seek to arrest Jade for the murder of a man whose body she discovered in a series of ancient tunnels. Now, Jade must call upon her friends to find her mother and expose the true villains, who have every intention of bringing about her own destruction...

The Serpent's Daughter (Jade del Cameron Mysteries, #3)

Interior designer Nicolò Castellini Baldissera joins forces with fashion and interiors photographer Guido Taroni to showcase the most beautiful homes Inside Tangier
  
 A white-walled city perched between Morocco and Europe, Tangier was long a haven for the literary and artistic avant-garde—and black sheep—of Europe and America. Now a new generation of residents are blending color, pattern, and taste to create an interior aesthetic all their own. "Inside Tangier" explores a selection of these exceptional properties and their eccentric inhabitants—from antiques dealer and collector Gordon Watson and interior designers Frank de Biasi and Veere Greeney to the late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and antiques dealer Christopher Gibbs—providing rare insights into the sometimes bohemian, sometimes extravagant, but always stylish “Tangerine” lifestyle.
  

Inside Tangier: House and Gardens of Tangier

Morocco: Ancient cities, adobe fortresses of centuries past, fertile plains of wheat and olives, carpets of wildflowers, endless deserts, wild mountains, and isolated rural villages. And of course, the fabled open-air markets framed with stacks of woven rugs and other handicrafts, exotic scents wafting through the aisles, the hum of Arabic, Berber, French. Within this diverse land and confluence of cultures, many rich and ancient craft traditions carry on—women spin and weave, make buttons, embroider designs passed down through generations, and sew stunning native costumes. "Women Artisans of Morocco" tells the stories of twenty-five women who practice these textile traditions with an inspiring energy, pride, and fortitude. For the first time, we have a book that focuses on the artisans of Morocco themselves, those who produce these beautiful textiles that contribute substantially to their family's income while maintaining households and raising children.
 You will step into the lives of these Moroccan women artisans and gain an appreciation for their artistic skills and ingenuity but also for their strong roles in this supposedly male-dominated society, their fierce independence and determination as they work to improve their economic livelihoods. You will be welcomed into their homes in rural Berber villages, in bustling cities, and in a remarkable desert oasis. You will begin to learn truly what it is like to live as a woman in Morocco and to be part of a rapidly changing society. Most of the women presented here are rug weavers whose ancient skills and designs vary from region to region. You will also meet Fes embroidery artists, women who needle-weave buttons that have decorated native costumes for centuries, and a contemporary seamstress. Joe Coca’s award-winning photography, guided by his curious and reverent sensibility, captures the beauty of the women, their work, and Morocco.

Women Artisans of Morocco: Their Stories, Their Lives

An idealistic young Englishman, Harry Summerfield, befriends an American oil explorer in Gibraltar in the 1930s. Their meeting sparks a journey for both men that will take them across Morocco and northern Africa, to encounter the harsh realities of Berber opposition to French colonial rule and the passion and conflict of a love for the same young French woman. Full of action, character and extraordinarily vivid local colour, this is a vast novel of adventure, romance and intrigue which keeps the reader guessing page after page. From the hustle and bustle of Marrakech to the beautiful solitude of the Atlas Mountains, and incorporating all levels of society in pre-war Morocco (from Berber tribesmen to French politicians), Amazir is a powerfully evocative work dealing with a vast spectrum of human experience from wonder to despair. Revisiting the traditional epic-style novel format, Tom Gamble's Amazir is a breathtaking journey into the souks and mountains of Morocco that chronicles a powerful love affair and a nation s political turmoil.

Amazir: A Novel of Morocco

The first general history in English of Morocco in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Morocco since 1830: A History explores the profound changes that have affected social relations in Morocco over the last 150 years, especially those between the sexes, and between linguistic identities and cultures.
 Although the country has returned to roughly its pre-colonial boundaries, Morocco still suffers from the effects of colonization by France and Spain. Its current king, like the sultans of the nineteenth century, claims legitimacy through his leadership of the Islamic community, but there is a long tradition of dissent based on Islamic ideals. Morocco's history is also marked by the enduring presence of a large Jewish community.
 This comprehensive portrait examines the tactics used by Moroccan rulers to cope with European penetration in the nineteenth century and colonialism in the twentieth, and, since the 1950s, to retain control of the independent state. As Pennell points out, however, the ruling dynasty is not sufficiently representative of modern Morocco, nor are political events the only influence on change. Most Moroccans are still poor, and their lives are shaped by their economic circumstances. The influence of harvests, access to land and water, and external trade have always determined the fate of the majority.

Morocco Since 1830: A History

Culture Smart! provides essential information on attitudes, beliefs and behavior in different countries, ensuring that you arrive at your destination aware of basic manners, common courtesies, and sensitive issues. These concise guides tell you what to expect, how to behave, and how to establish a rapport with your hosts. This inside knowledge will enable you to steer clear of embarrassing gaffes and mistakes, feel confident in unfamiliar situations, and develop trust, friendships, and successful business relationships. Culture Smart! offers illuminating insights into the culture and society of a particular country. It will help you to turn your visit-whether on business or for pleasure-into a memorable and enriching experience. Contents include * customs, values, and traditions * historical, religious, and political background * life at home * leisure, social, and cultural life * eating and drinking * do's, don'ts, and taboos * business practices * communication, spoken and unspoken

Morocco - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

The Simple Past came out in 1954, and both in France and its author’s native Morocco the book caused an explosion of fury. The protagonist, who shares the author’s name, Driss, comes from a Moroccan family of means, his father a self-made tea merchant, the most devout of Muslims, quick to be provoked and ready to lash out verbally or physically, continually bent on subduing his timid wife and many children to his iron and ever-righteous will. He is known, simply, as the Lord, and Driss, who is in high school, is in full revolt against both him and the French colonial authorities, for whom, as much as for his father, he is no one. Driss Chraibi’s classic coming-of-age story is about colonialism, Islam, the subjection of women, and finding, as his novel does, a voice that is as cutting and coruscating as it is original and free.

The Simple Past

Jonathan Wyrtzen's "Making Morocco" is an extraordinary work of social science history. "Making Morocco"'s historical coverage is remarkably thorough and sweeping; the author exhibits incredible scope in his research and mastery of an immensely rich set of materials from poetry to diplomatic messages in a variety of languages across a century of history. The monograph engages with the most important theorists of nationalism, colonialism, and state formation, and uses Pierre Bourdieu's field theory as a framework to orient and organize the socio-historical problems of the case and to make sense of the different types of problems various actors faced as they moved forward. His analysis makes constant reference to core categories of political sociology state, nation, political field, religious and political authority, identity and social boundaries, classification struggles, etc., and he does so in exceptionally clear and engaging prose. Rather than sidelining what might appear to be more tangential themes in the politics of identity formation in Morocco, Wyrtzen examines deeply not only French colonialism but also the Spanish zone, and he makes central to his analysis the Jewish question and the role of gender. These areas of analysis allow Wyrtzen to examine his outcome of interest--which is really a historical process of interest--from every conceivable analytical and empirical angle. The end-product is an absolutely exemplary study of colonialism, identity formation, and the classification struggles that accompany them. This is not a work of high-brow social theory, but a classic work of history, deeply influenced but not excessively burdened by social-theoretical baggage.

Making Morocco: Colonial Intervention and the Politics of Identity

“A cookbook by Paula Wolfert is cause for celebration. Ms. Wolfert may be America’s most knowledgeable food person and her books are full of insight, passion and brilliance.”
—Anthony Dias Blue, CBS Radio, NY

“I think she’s one of the finest and most influential food writers in this country…one of the leading lights in contemporary gastronomy.”
—Craig Claiborne

Paula Wolfert, the undisputed queen of Mediterranean cooking, provides food lovers with the definitive guide to "The Food of Morocco". Lavishly photographed and packed with tantalizing recipes to please the modern palate, "The Food of Morocco" provides helpful preparation techniques for chefs, home cooks, and any serious student of the culinary arts and culture. This is the perfect companion to Wolfert’s classic, "Couscous and Other Good Food from Morocco"—a 2008 inductee into the James Beard Cookbook Hall of Fame—and fans of Claudia Roden, Elizabeth David, Martha Rose Schulman, and Poopa Dweck will be delighted by this extraordinary culinary journey across this colorful and exhilarating land.


The Food of Morocco

A Life Full of Holes

A beautifully designed and lavishly photographed celebration of Marrakesh and the cuisine of Morocco. Part cookbook and part travelogue, A Month in Marrakesh is an evocative account of the colorful and delicious flavors of Morocco. Andy Harris shares his love of the food and culture with more than 250 flavorful recipes inspired by the bustling markets and fresh ingredients. The recipes have been tailored for the home cook and are accompanied by full-color photographs. This book covers all aspects of Moroccan cuisine, ranging from breakfasts and snacks to tagines, roasts, and desserts. Cook to impress with mouthwatering dishes such as Beef and Quince Tagine, Roasted Lamb Shoulder with Orange &amp; Honey Syrup, and sweet treats like Figs with Almond Milk Ice Cream and Orange Flower Donuts. Along with the recipes, photographer David Loftus includes his beautiful images from the pulsating marketplaces, winding alleys, and tranquil gardens. A Month in Marrakesh showcases the food and culture of Morocco as you've never seen before--an intoxicating mix of ancient and modern, with useful hints and personal, handwritten vignettes and line drawings adding a personal feel to Andy's inspiring recipes.

A Month in Marrakesh: A Food Journey to the Heart of Morocco. Andy Harris

The year is 1951, and just as the recently born State of Israel takes its first toddling steps toward the future, a young Jewish woman in Morocco watches as her mother's last breath reduces her into a thing of the past. Amid her sorrow and mourning, Tamar Ben Zaken must now sacrifice her goals and ambitions in order to care for her father and siblings. To make matters worse, their secure and privileged life may be coming to an end at the hands of political and social changes that threaten the peaceful coexistence between Moroccan Jews and Muslims, who are outraged by Israel's establishment.

But when Tamar's father marries a superficial woman, Tamar flees to live with her cousin in the big city of Marrakesh. While there, she studies at a prestigious French school for women, and meets Daniel, the love of her life. But Daniel harbors a secret that threatens their hopes and dreams of building a family...

Inspired by actual events, "One Moroccan Woman" sets interpersonal drama against the backdrop of political, social, and religious volatility. Experience tragedies, challenges, and triumphs of the human spirit, as Tamar discovers that fate has a plan she could've never written for herself.

One Moroccan Woman

This long-awaited English-language debut from Morocco's most prominent contemporary writer won the Prix Gouncourt de Nouvelles, France's most prestigious literary award, for best story collection. Laroui uses surrealism, laugh-out-loud humor, and profound compassion across a variety of literary styles to highlight the absurdity of the human condition, exploring the realities of life in a world where everything is foreign.

Fouad Laroui has published over twenty novels and collections of short stories, poetry, and essays. Laroui teaches econometrics and environmental science at the University of Amsterdam, and lives between Amsterdam, Paris, and Casablanca.

The Curious Case of Dassoukine’s Trousers

A poetic and richly sensual chronicle of a Westerner's unexpected love affair with Morocco

 

Pamela Windo chronicles her love of Morocco and its people in this wondrous collection of true stories, peeling back layers of history, paint, and finely embroidered fabrics to find the truths in the mysterious and the exotic. She describes the colors, flavors, songs, and textures of an almost dream-like nation. Her stories are of snatched affairs, unforeseen warmth, and subtle eroticism in shadowed courtyards. The results are liberating and uplifting portraits of places and people, each told with an extraordinary delicacy. Behind the veils, she discovers kindness, beauty, and passion that afford her life a whole new dimension.

Morocco

The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca

Tahir Shah

Lords of the Atlas: The Rise and Fall of the House of Glaoua, 1893-1956

Gavin Maxwell

In Arabian Nights: A Caravan of Moroccan Dreams

Tahir Shah

The Sheltering Sky

Paul Bowles

Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits

Laila Lalami

The Spider's House

Paul Bowles

Hideous Kinky

Esther Freud

In Morocco

Edith Wharton

For Bread Alone

Mohamed Choukri

The Sand Child

Tahar Ben Jelloun

A House in Fez: Building a Life in the Ancient Heart of Morocco

Suzanna Clarke

Her Secret Son

Hannah Mary McKinnon

The Last Storytellers: Tales from the Heart of Morocco

Richard L. Hamilton

Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood

Fatema Mernissi

The Voices of Marrakesh: A Record of a Visit

Elias Canetti

A Year in Marrakesh

Peter Mayne

This Blinding Absence of Light

Tahar Ben Jelloun

Stolen Lives: Twenty Years in a Desert Jail

Malika Oufkir

Let it Come Down

Paul Bowles

A Street in Marrakech: A Personal View of Urban Women in Morocco

Elizabeth Warnock Fernea

A Palace in the Old Village

Tahar Ben Jelloun

And the Dark Sacred Night

Julia Glass

Year of the Elephant: A Moroccan Woman's Journey Toward Independence

Leila Abouzeid

The Time in Between

María Dueñas

Their Heads are Green and Their Hands are Blue: Scenes from the Non-Christian World

Paul Bowles

White Gold: The Extraordinary Story of Thomas Pellow and Islam's One Million White Slaves

Giles Milton

Horses of God

Mahi Binebine

Moon Morocco

Lucas Peters

The Storyteller of Marrakesh: A Novel

Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya

The Sultan's Wife

Jane Johnson

The Heat of Betrayal

Douglas Kennedy

Dune Song

Suyi Davies Okungbowa

The Serpent's Daughter (Jade del Cameron Mysteries, #3)

Suzanne Arruda

Inside Tangier: House and Gardens of Tangier

Nicoló Castellini Baldissera

Women Artisans of Morocco: Their Stories, Their Lives

Susan Schaefer Davis

Amazir: A Novel of Morocco

Tom Gamble

Morocco Since 1830: A History

C.R. Pennell

Morocco - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

Jillian York

The Simple Past

Driss Chraïbi

Making Morocco: Colonial Intervention and the Politics of Identity