Hope and other dangerous pursuits - Laila Lalami

In her exciting debut, Laila Lalami evokes the grit and enduring grace that is modern Morocco and offers an authentic look at the Muslim immigrant experience today.



The book begins as four Moroccans illegally cross the Strait of Gibraltar in an inflatable boat headed for Spain. There's Murad, a gentle, educated man who's been reduced to hustling tourists around Tangier; Halima, who's fleeing her drunken husband and the slums of Casablanca; Aziz, who must leave behind his devoted wife to find work in Spain; and Faten, a student and religious fanatic whose faith is at odds with an influential man determined to destroy her future.

What has driven these men and women to risk their lives? And will the rewards prove to be worth the danger? Sensitively written with beauty and boldness, this is a grip-ping book about people in search of a better future.

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LAILA LALAMI was born and raised in Morocco. Her work has appeared in the Baltimore Review, the Los Angeles Times, the Independent, the Nation, and elsewhere. She is the creator and editor of the literary blog www.moorishgirl.com. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

PRAISE FOR HOPE AND OTHER DANGEROUS PURSUITS

"Lalami skillfully limns the dark recesses of the Muslim world and creates true-to-life characters . . . With subtlety and grace [she] explores the emotional complexities of the culture they're trying to escape-one that bears more resemblance to ours than we may imagine."-People

"Moroccan-born Lailai Lalami's thrilling debut novel follows four desperate people . . . fleeing Morocco in a flimsy boat across the dangerous Strait of Gibraltar in a death-defying bid for freedom in Spain, a narrative journey that the popular morrishgirl.com blogger Lalami handles with a keen sense of history, hope, and panache."-Elle