Another first for me in a book by Fiona Valpy. I've read a great deal about the diaspora of Jews and refugees in WW2 but nothing about Morocco. The setting is a perfect place for the story to take place.
The dual narrative switches between 1941-1943 and 2010. In 2010, Zoe and her family have come to Casablanca with her husband's work, in hopes of a fresh start after some unrevealed trauma in the past.
This is contrasted with 13 year old French refugee Josie's diary of life in Casablanca after her family escapes from Paris, waiting to get to America.

Both stories were interesting and kept me intrigued as to what fate awaited their respective characters. I had an idea the twist at the end was coming but it did take me by surprise and brought together the threads of the narrative, explaining the ideas dangled in front of us but never explained.

I really enjoyed the author's descriptions of Morocco and the way she highlights the ongoing global refugee crisis.

I would definitely recommend this book and am very grateful to the publishers and Netgalley for an early release copy.

I got bored reading the diary of a 12 year old, after all I’m an adult who needs to be entertained by my reading. This felt more like a YA book. Not for me.

What a joy! Treat yourself to The storyteller of Casablanca and let Fiona Valpy wit, poignancy, and insight take you away' A real treat!
Let this book take you away to another land for a few hours of pure delight.

This was a wonderfully descriptive novel that takes place in Morocco, mostly Casablanca. You can almost see, hear, touch and smell the surroundings in the novel. I’ve been to Casablanca just once, many years ago but this book has peaked my interest into perhaps thinking about visiting again at some point when the world has opened up again.

The book is written in a dual time line. Our main character is Zoe, who is fairly new to Casablanca and trying hard to fit in to the expat community with the help of a few welcoming and helpful women. Her husband Tom has been transferred with his job to the city. There is also their baby Grace filling up Zoe’s days. However, Zoe is lonely and spends many hours on her own while Tom works late. While in her daughter’s bedroom, she finds a loose floorboard and underneath is a little box with a few trinkets and a diary. The diary is of a young girl of 13 called Josie written during the second world war. Josie and her family had left Paris to go to America to escape the Nazis in France. Their time in Casablanca was to be a stop-over, just for a short while until their papers for the United States came through. Zoe begins reading the diary and soon finds herself intrigued by the young author of the diary and wondering what became of them. She starts doing a little bit of research of her own.

It took me a little while to get into this novel but once I did, I was very interested. There was the hint throughout the book that something wasn’t right in Zoe and Tom’s marriage and you need to keep reading to understand what happened to this couple in order for them to seem so broken.

I enjoyed the two timelines in the novel. I equally liked the two main characters but I was particularly interested in Josie’s story. We hear about WWII in various places throughout the world but this was the first time I’ve read a story about Morocco during the second world war.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book will be included in my Most Favorite Books Read in 2021 list. I was moved by so many things in this incredibly beautiful book. Ms. Valpy's story telling of these two women in two different times is beautiful, the setting is magical. It's a book I'll be sharing with family and friends for a long time to come.

I was totally immersed in this book and absolutely loved it. I have enjoyed all Fiona Valpy's novels and her interweaving of present day stories wit historical fiction is mesmerising. The underlying narrative of coping with grief resonated with me very strongly personally. Superb!

Having read and enjoyed The Skylark’s Secret by Fiona Valpy, I had to request this book. I was not disappointed. It is a story written in dual timelines. Zoe, young , married with a baby, goes to live in Casablanca when her husband accepts a posting there. He works for a shipping company and spends a lot of time at work. Zoe is befriended by some of the other expats, and is encouraged to take part in some of their activities. One day, she finds a loose floorboard in her daughter’s bedroom. When she tries to fix it, she discovers a wooden box containing a journal, hidden underneath. The journal was written in 1941, by a 13 year old Jewish girl, who had fled, with her family, from their home in Paris to escape the Nazis. It describes life in Casablanca during the war years and the difficulties refugees were facing there.
I loved the little fables interspersed in the story and also liked the descriptions of the Medina, the people, the landscape and life in general.
I was not expecting the final turn in the story.
My thanks to NetGalley, Fiona Valpy and Lake Union Publishing for an ARC copy of this lovely story.

A wonderful tale that toggles back and forth from current period to 1940s period. The writing develops throughout the story as the child, Josie, in the 1940s matures through the actions that surround her. In addition, Zoe finds the strength within the writing of the child to provide a new direction in her life. The descriptions of the landscape, cities and people of Morocco, are wonderfully descriptive and provides a view into a place I have not visited to date. The history of Morocco during WWII, told in Josie’s diary, were informative and well researched. A diary written by an 13 year old and the current day events of a troubled young married woman, switches frequently between each one’s story. The characters were well portrayed and were mostly enjoyable characters. I enjoyed the different perspective of the war and how it did have far reaches that might not have always been the mainstream.

My thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing/Lake Union Publishing for this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Initially I found the narrative immature, but then had to revise my opinion as the story unfolded. It was apt for the tale and surprisingly, Josie’s narrative did mature over time.

With a love for Morocco I could not resist requesting this book. Despite containing descriptions of the landscape, cities and people of Morocco, bringing back fond memories of my recent visits, it’s not a page-turner. The history of Morocco during WW2, as retold in Josie’s diary, were informative and well researched. A diary written by an 13 year old and the current day events of a troubled young married woman, switches frequently between each one’s story. The characters were well portrayed and for the most part likeable.

Zoe is finding it almost impossible to settle into her new life in Morocco, with her husband and a new baby and being so far from home. While investigating her new home, she finds a wooden box under the floorboards in her daughter’s bedroom. In the box are the diary and letters of Josie, a young girl waiting with her family in Casablanca in 1940 for transport to the United States, as they try to stay one step ahead of the Nazis. In Josie’s diary, Zoe is able to explore a city and a time long vanished, both the beauty and the terror. This is an unforgettable read, you can almost smell the cinnamon and allspice of the bazaar