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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a heart-wrenching and beautiful read.
Zoe and Tom's marriage is on the rocks as they move across the world from Bristol to Casablanca, with Tom being relocated for work. They hope that this fresh start in a foreign country will bring the change their marriage needs.
As they settle into their new home in Casablanca, Zoe discovers a box of treasures hidden away under a floorboard in her baby Grace's room. Amongst this seemingly random collection of items, she finds a journal belonging to Josie—a little girl who lived in the exact same house during the Second World War.
Alternating between two timelines, we follow Zoe as she struggles to adjust to life in Casablanca in 2010 and Josie's experiences in 1941, as her half-Catholic, half-Jewish family flees their native France to escape the Nazi invasion. They find refuge in Casablanca with the hope of resettling in America.
This book is exceptionally well-written, and the beautiful descriptions of Casablanca transported me there, allowing me to see and experience it through Zoe and Josie's eyes. I fell in love with the characters, the bonds they formed, and their individual struggles that tugged at my heartstrings, leaving me yearning for both Zoe and Josie to have the happy endings they deserved.
The Storyteller of Casablanca is a poignant tale of love, loss, strength, grief, and friendship, and it’s a powerful read that everyone should add to their tbr.
Zoe and Tom's marriage is on the rocks as they move across the world from Bristol to Casablanca, with Tom being relocated for work. They hope that this fresh start in a foreign country will bring the change their marriage needs.
As they settle into their new home in Casablanca, Zoe discovers a box of treasures hidden away under a floorboard in her baby Grace's room. Amongst this seemingly random collection of items, she finds a journal belonging to Josie—a little girl who lived in the exact same house during the Second World War.
Alternating between two timelines, we follow Zoe as she struggles to adjust to life in Casablanca in 2010 and Josie's experiences in 1941, as her half-Catholic, half-Jewish family flees their native France to escape the Nazi invasion. They find refuge in Casablanca with the hope of resettling in America.
This book is exceptionally well-written, and the beautiful descriptions of Casablanca transported me there, allowing me to see and experience it through Zoe and Josie's eyes. I fell in love with the characters, the bonds they formed, and their individual struggles that tugged at my heartstrings, leaving me yearning for both Zoe and Josie to have the happy endings they deserved.
The Storyteller of Casablanca is a poignant tale of love, loss, strength, grief, and friendship, and it’s a powerful read that everyone should add to their tbr.
I ended up on a WWII kick, and really enjoyed this book, especially the ending! I won't spoil it for you, but a good read for sure!
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
i wasn’t sure what to rate this as my feelings at the start were different to the end. but overall such an incredible book about truth, grief, trauma, hope, compassion, set in a war-torn casablanca during ww2. each life affected by wars and refugee crises need to be projected from the rooftops as they are so intricately important. i loved how the book connected events and emotions from Josie and Zoe, and how all life is cyclical and interconnected.
I preferred Josie’s story line to Zoe’s. Like many other reviewers I wish the reason for Zoe’s troubles marriage and anxiety had been revealed earlier.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, War
challenging
emotional
sad
fast-paced
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Storyteller of Casablanca tells two intertwining narratives of two women who lived in the same house decades apart. Josie is a teenager whose family has moved to Casablanca, Morocco to escape the Germans while Zoe is escaping her own traumatic past with a husband who has become a stranger. Zoe discovers Josie's journal in the floorboards of her house and follows Josie's story as she adjusts to life as a refugee in Morocco.
Overall, I enjoyed this story, but I thought it was too long and that the storylines didn't pick up until about a third of the way through the book. I'm not a huge fan of the two-storyline books, and while this book did a great job at weaving them together, the separate plot lines didn't really start until later in each story. I did love the research done into Moroccan history and culture and hearing about the lives of the different refugee communities--that was so interesting and well done. I just didn't find the plots themselves all that intriguing. Of the two main plot twists (Zoe's and then the main one), only one was a big surprise, although I did love it.
This book could have been better if it was shorter and the plots were stronger and started earlier, but still a good read!
Overall, I enjoyed this story, but I thought it was too long and that the storylines didn't pick up until about a third of the way through the book. I'm not a huge fan of the two-storyline books, and while this book did a great job at weaving them together, the separate plot lines didn't really start until later in each story. I did love the research done into Moroccan history and culture and hearing about the lives of the different refugee communities--that was so interesting and well done. I just didn't find the plots themselves all that intriguing. Of the two main plot twists (Zoe's and then the main one), only one was a big surprise, although I did love it.
This book could have been better if it was shorter and the plots were stronger and started earlier, but still a good read!
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a dual timeline between WWII and 2010, weaving together the stories of 2 families that lived in the same home in Casablanca. WWII historic fiction is my favourite genre, but sometimes the stories are too similar. This book was not that; a new setting, new stories to be spun and some unexpected theists at the end.