Customer Reviews

Tangier, a novel

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
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This is a wonderful marriage between fiction and history-- the author's description of Tangier leaves one still smelling and tasting the city weeks later. The love story is fast paced and passionate but remains true to the time and the culture! Haven't enjoyed a historical fiction like this since Noel Barber's A Woman of Cairo! Highly recommend!

A compelling and interesting book. Never have I learned so much about a country with so little effort. The country's history is really the star, and the country itself is shown in a most engaging and accessible way. My "knowledge" of Morocco was pretty much limited to Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman before I read "Tangier", but I now feel like an expert. All this plus some unexpectedly steamy sex.

I loved this book! First, because I found the smells and tastes of Morocco so artfully described. Second, because the story drew me into an historical context with which I was unfamiliar. It brought me into north Africa at a time when colonialism was forcing the characters in this narrative to examine their loyalties in the midst of turbulent events. How and why they made the choices they did kept me turning the pages, sorry to let them go when the final page was turned.

This engaging first novel uses a quarter century of pre-colonial Moroccan history as the backdrop for a tale of love, betrayal, political intrigue and idealism. In 1882, a pregnant Berber girl is assaulted near the American Legation in Tangier (the US's oldest overseas diplomatic property). She is rescued by the dashing US consul, and her daughter is raised in the unique setting of pre-colonial Tangier. Young Lili's mixed Moroccan-US psyche is beautifully crafted, and Diane Skelly Ponasik clothes her characters in a rich fabric of colloquial Arabic and French, capturing the Muslim-Jewish-Christian society of Tangier and the complex loyalties of Moroccans struggling for a country both politically and culturally strong. As the star-crossed lovers, Lili and Tarik, meet and separate over the decades they mirror the identity issues of a country in turmoil. There are heroes and villains on all sides, and the picture of Morocco as the last exotic society in sight of Europe is beautifully drawn.

Readers interested in the Arab Near East will be fascinated, and the Morocco bound will be enthralled.

Great way to learn about Middle Eastern culture, mores and cuisine. The story threads through Moroccan society from 1882 to 1907, with a light romance that captivates. Readers will take to the quick paced account of Lili, a Moroccan girl adopted by the American Ambassador. Lili, along with her British and aristocratic Arab cohorts, lives through civil war as the French strive to dominate the region.

A must read for anyone unfortunate enough not to have lived in Tangier.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which kept me coming back for more as often as I could. Wonderfully rich in detail, with endearing characters and a perfect pace.
Knowing nothing about Morocco prior to reading this novel - I now feel like I have lived and breathed its essence and culture, thanks to the Author's wonderfully descriptive account of a special period in time.

Thank you for an enjoyable reading experience.

TANGIER takes you to a beautiful place with exotic people whose romantic pursuits are as familiar as Antony & Cleopatra.