Desert

More about the book

Desert is the story of the "last free men" and Europe's colonial legacy, told in two alternating narratives. One follows young Nour and his people, the desert warriors known as the Blue Men, driven from their lands by French colonial soldiers in 1909 and seeking the aid of the great spiritual leader known as Water of the Eyes. The other narrative, set decades later, is the story of Lalla, an orphaned descendant of the Blue Men. From a shantytown in coastal Morocco, she flees to France to escape a forced marriage with a wealthy man.