LJ Ross Picks a Historical Fiction for this Month's Book Group

The Storyteller of Casablanca

– Fiona Valpy

The dual-storyline begins in 1940s Morocco with 12-year-old Josie, who has fled Nazi-occupied France with her family to Casablanca, where they await safe passage to America. Inspired by the rich textures of her surroundings, Josie is enthralled by all that her new city has to offer. Seventy years later, the perspective shifts to Zoe, an expat who finds herself in Casablanca and is struggling to see beyond her struggling marriage and the pressures of motherhood. But, when she discovers an old box from the 1940s beneath the floorboards of her daughter’s bedroom, she begins to see Casablanca through the eyes of a young girl who once shared the same view…

LJ’s Thoughts:

‘This is an immersive novel, where the reader is invited to fall into Valpy’s Casablanca, which embodies the stultified expat community as well as the intense vivacity of an earlier time. It’s a captivating read, with enough historical detail to be authentic without being too “heavy”. That being said, I’d describe this as a novel to be savoured rather than devoured; it builds pace until the final denouement and, in my view, is all the better for it.’

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