MarocMama - A Fearless Guide to Food and Travel
In December I shared one of my favorite books everyday and it turned out to be a big hit. Seems many people are as avid readers as I am! This year, I’ve promised myself to take more time to just read. February is the shortest month of the year but that didn’t slow me down. In the middle of the month we had to go to Rabat to get some paperwork sorted out for my carte sejour (residency card). This gave me nearly 10 hours on a train with no internet. Enough time to finish two books!
I’ve noticed that I’ve been reading lots of non-fiction. Not sure why but hope it inspires you too.
Reading Offline
When Hitler Took Cocaine: Fascinating Footnotes from History – Giles Milton
I love little history factoids and trivia so this short book was perfect for me. It’s under 100 pages and is several different essays that share little known facts of history. I read it quickly. I think it would be great for teenagers who might think history is boring. The stories are short enough to keep the reader engaged and focus more on the personal stories than on dates and places. Best thing? It’s under $1 on Kindle.
White Gold: The Extraordinary Story of Thomas Pellow and Islam’s One Million White Slaves – Giles Milton
After reading the short book above, I looked up some more books by the author and came across this book. It’s set in Morocco and is the real story of Moulay Ismail (what a nasty man he was!). For me this was really interesting because many of the places in the book were locations I’ve actually been. It also was interesting because part of my family lineage descends from Cornwall – who knows maybe I do have roots tied to Morocco somehow. I found it interesting the outrage expressed by Western nations while at the same time they were involved in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks – Rebecca Skloot
This book had been on my list for awhile and I’ve read great reviews. So I began reading it early in the month and tried to stick with it. Ultimately the story is interesting, the life and the family make it good. But, I felt like the book was repetitive and I got bored about 3/4 of the way through. If it were about 100 pages shorter and tighter it would have been a really excellent read. Overall I learned a few things I didn’t know and was reminded how much the medical system and patient rights have changed in the last 50 years.
When Books Went to War: The Stories That Helped Us Win WWII
– Molly Guptill Manning
Another historical book (see I told you I was on a kick!) this is my favorite time period to read about. I connected with many of the stories and anecdotes from soldiers who were overjoyed at having books to read. While my life is in no way that of a soldier, having books as an expat is a very needed and simple comfort. The history of how these books came to be planned and published for soldiers was amazing. A great read for any book lovers.
Reading Online
I probably read 5-15 articles online everyday. At least. Some of my favorite reads from February;
How to turn your kids into foodies from Pintsize Gourmets (we’ve had the pleasure to meet these two kid foodies and their very cool parents in Marrakech last year- love them!)
Argan Oil Demand Worries Morocco’s Berbers from Al Jazeera – this is a very real issue. Many people come to Morocco wanting dirt cheap argan. The truth is it’s a valuable and limited resource and the price is reflected in quality.
The Wanderer: The Story of an American Who Left Home and Never Came Back from AFAR – For some people there’s no desire to return “home” but rather make their home elsewhere.
Translating “Frozen” Into Arabic from The New Yorker – This might have been the most interesting thing I read this month!
Non-Muslim Countries “go halal” to Attract Muslims from Muslim Ink (then check out my post on why you should visit a Muslim country in 2015)
There is a sample of what I’ve read last month. What about you? Share your links in the comments!
