Laila Lalami Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Anthologies

Laila Lalami is a published Moroccan essayist and author.

Lalami was born in 1968 in Rabat. She grew up and received her education in three different places, starting with Morocco, then Great Britain, and finally the United States.

She has had her opinion pieces as well as essays appear in such publications such as The Nation, The Washington Post, the New York Times, and anthologies, to name just a few. She has also been the recipient of some honors and awards.

Lalami is the author of the 2009 novel Secret Son. It was nominated for several prizes. Her second book is titled The Moor’s Account and it is an acclaimed novel, winning the author the American Book Award as well as a Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, and an Arab-American Book Award. It ended up being a finalist in the category of fiction in 2015 for the Pulitzer Prize as well.

She has also been the recipient of many fellowships, including a Guggenheim, a Fulbright, and a British Council fellowship. She teaches creative writing as well as a professor at U. of California Riverside. Pantheon is the publisher of her 2019 novel, The Other Americans.

Secret Son is a full length fictional novel by author Laila Lalami. If you are interested in unique voices and books that possess the spirit of stories such as The Reluctant Fundamentalist, then check out this book for yourself by going online to find it and read it for yourself!

Youssef el-Mekki is the main character of this fascinating story from a talented author. Youssef is nineteen years old and this young man is currently living in Casablanca. His mother shares their home with him in the slums and they don’t have much hope for getting out. Youssef is shocked one day when he finds out that one of his family members that he thought was dead is still alive.

He always thought that his father died, but it appears that this is not the case at all. He is living still and wants to get to know his son. He even wishes to support Youssef in an apparent bid to make up for lost time. Youssef chooses to leave his home and his mother back behind him and go with his father for a while.

The result is stepping into a life that he never would have had otherwise. It’s a dream life, one that others would love to have. It’s crazy how much has suddenly changed with the advent of a father that is influential, rich, and famous. He has his own apartment, and it’s a penthouse that is not only decked out but stacked to the rafters with all of the finest things.

Just like that, he has a totally new status in life and the penthouse and all of the amenities that come with it. It is a total change from how he is used to living in the slums, where pretty much every day is a struggle. The future of this young man seems like it’s about to take off, and he has no idea what he really did to ever deserve this. It’s like winning the lottery out of nowhere.

When his fortune reverses and things suddenly tumble down, he finds that the penthouse and the new materialistic life that he was living are about to disappear just like that. You can go from having nothing to having something and apparently right back down again. It happens just as he was settling into his new materialistic life, too.

When Youssef goes back to the same old streets and meets up with the same friends that he has had from childhood, he finds that things may have changed a bit there too. It appears that the world is moving along as well as The Party, a fringe group that is extreme in its beliefs, have settled in and decided to put their headquarters in this area.

This is a great first novel from an author that explores such common themes in life such as family, struggling to find identity, desperation that can come over average lives, and a country that is going through divides in religion, politics, class, and more. Read this book to experience every word from this talented writer for yourself!

Find a great second novel or just an incredibly engaging weekend read in the book The Moor’s Account. It was 1527 when Panfilo de Narvaez set sail. The conquistador took off from the Sanlucar de Barrameda port with a stout crew consisting of six hundred crew men. They also had with them the amount of 100 horses read to ride.

De Narvaez was taking off in his ship in the hopes of being able to set out and find land and claim it once he was there. If he could get to the current location of the United States’ Gulf Coast, this conquistador was convinced that he would be able to take it in the name of the Spanish crown and claim it in royal honor.

It would also be a feat that would make him famous as well as wealthy. His name would instantly ascend to rival that of Herman Cortes. He or his family would never want for money. The expedition was optimistic in nature and was supposed to do a great many things for him if it were to succeed. But what if it were to fail?

The Narvaez expedition has been at risk ever since its arrival in Florida. The future American state offered up nothing but hideous danger after the other, right from the start. They faced disease, navigation errors, running low on supplies and then starvation. They also were up against the tribes of the area. These local people were not thrilled to see them up and put up some resistance and obstacles.

What starts off as a crew of six hundred quickly dwindles to just four within the course of a year. The treasurer, a Spanish nobleman, an explorer, and a Moroccan slave are all that remain. Their adventures across a continent will have them taking on many roles. Read this book to experience all of it for yourself!