The Storyteller of Casablanca by Fiona Valpy – 316 pages
Finished copy from Lake Union Amazon Publishing for an honest review
Book Blurb:
The Storyteller of Casablanca by Fiona Valpy: Morocco, 1941. With France having fallen to Nazi occupation, twelve-year-old Jewish girl Josie has fled with her family to Casablanca, where they await safe passage to America. Life here is as intense as the sun, every sight, smell and sound overwhelming to the senses in a city filled with extraordinary characters. It’s a world away from the trouble back home—and Josie loves it.
Seventy years later, another new arrival in the intoxicating port city, Zoe, is struggling—with her marriage, her baby daughter and her new life as an expat in an unfamiliar place. But when she discovers a small wooden box and a diary from the 1940s beneath the floorboards of her daughter’s bedroom, Zoe enters the inner world of young Josie, who once looked out on the same view of the Atlantic Ocean, but who knew a very different Casablanca.
It’s not long before Zoe begins to see her adopted city through Josie’s eyes. But can a new perspective help her turn tragedy into hope, and find the comfort she needs to heal her broken heart?
My Review: 3.5 stars
The Storyteller of Casablanca by Fiona Valpy was a thoughtful read that brought Morocco to life through a dual timeline story. Both timelines featured a strong main character, one of a thirteen-year-old girl that escaped the persecution of Jews in Europe with her family and the other, a woman adrift in a foreign country with a rocky marriage and young child.
I enjoyed seeing Casablanca come alive through the character’s eyes with solid and vivid storytelling. It’s not often that stories about WWII feature North Africa so it was interesting to learn about that.
Josie, the young girl, had a more powerful and pivotal story, yet it was Zoe who learned about the influence of community and friendship to strengthen her mental health. It’s not often that two timelines can converge, but this one offered a nice twist that left me completely satisfied with the ending. There was something quiet about this book and it sometimes read slowly as Zoe’s character wasn’t fleshed out until late in the book. Overall, it was a good and interesting read that book clubs will enjoy.
Quotes I liked:
It’s a large book called a thesaurus and it is full of interesting suggestions for alternative, different, unconventional, unorthodox, out of the ordinary, substitute vocabulary.”
“The ocean is big enough to take your grief and keep it safe for you, freeing up space in your heart for other things.”
“I have my own problems, that’s for sure, but that still shouldn’t stop me from trying to help those whose problems are even greater than mine.”
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