Around the World... in 80 books.

Okay, so it has been a while. We have been journeying and trying to live life. A cause that is dear to my heart has been under some intense pressure and I have been spending most of my time translating articles in a variety of languages to understand some of the deeper societal issues.


While all of that has been going on, I, of course, have been keeping up on a variety of blogs and recommendations. I found this site that struck my fancy as a bibliophile who loves to travel: Around the World in 80 Books. Hmmm. I think I can do that!

Our wonderful book club, unofficially titled "The Reading Makes You Smarter Book Club," has spent much of the past year in fictional England, with a stop here or there in Non-fiction, or France (at least twice). Is it that educated women of a certain age love to reread Jane Austen and the Brontes? I do enjoy the club but I am going to challenge myself with the "around the world" theme.

Providentially, I had birthday money, and a trip through the hallowed aisles of Costco brought me face to face with an author I kept hearing of, from a country I love. And so my first stop around the world is...

MOROCCO: Secret Son, by Laila Lalami

The story is intriguing. There are many strands of Moroccan life that may not be as accessible to those who have not lived there or are not as familiar with the ins and outs of a country with its roots in Africa, watered by Islam and with the winds of Europe waving its palm fronds. Layers of secrecy over the course of many years, and the recurring dream and theme of becoming a famous actor, are artfully arranged in the struggle of Youssef to determine his identity in a time of despair.

Now that I have begun my journey, I am off to another land.