Leïla Slimani w/ Elliott Bay Book Company

We are thrilled to be partnering with nous amis at Alliance Française de Seattle to virtually present one of the most dynamic writers in the world today, France-based Moroccan writer Leïla Slimani. Author of (these are titles in English) Adèle, The Perfect Nanny, and Sex and Lies, books which have garnered critical acclaim in France and all over the world, she is here with her newest, published in the U.S. as In the Country of Others (Penguin). Originally published as Le Pays de Arbes (Gaillmard), which we should have copies on-hand of, along with the English translation, this book is the first of a projected trilogy, loosely tracing Leïla Slimani’s own family story.

“The world of this novel – Morocco after World War II, leading up to the revolt against French colonialism – is beautifully created. Personal life, social life, everyday life spring vividly from the page, and we feel deeply for the family caught in the middle of the conflict of history. An exceptional, powerful novel from this justly celebrated writer.”  – Salman Rushdie.

“Leïla Slimani is a wonderful writer, and this gorgeous novel brings vibrantly to life the vanished world of 1950s Morocco, in a narrative at once richly layered and deceptively simple. I loved it and didn’t want it to end.”  -Claire Messud.

“A powerful and compelling family saga—about women and subjugation, otherness and belonging, and the often conflicting loyalty to both family and country—written with a deftness that has come to define Leïla Slimani’s writing. It will no doubt resonate in the reader’s mind long after the final sentence is read.”  – Christine Mangan.

Presented by ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE DE SEATTLE and Elliott Bay Book Company.