Review by afendley -- Gates to Tangier by Mois Benarroch

[afendley]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Gates to Tangier" by Mois Benarroch.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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There is much to be said of this book. The book drops the reader into the middle of a very dramatic family affair, a family called Benzirma. Rereading the first part of the book is necessary to understand the setting. It is based on a family who are spread apart living in different parts of the globe. The chapters are set apart by family members and locations of where the individual is. At the end of every chapter is direct dialogue from that certain character.

The plot consists of the journey of each of the members of the family back to Morocco. Many locations are cited through the text. Cultural identity is one of the main themes of the text because the family used to live with each other a while ago. The plot changes multiple times based on the setting of which the individual is located. The characters trying to get to their destination which brings about trials and various situations the characters must face before getting to Morocco. The reader will also learn a lot about Tetuoan.

Being dropped in the middle of a family situation at the beginning of the book caused me great exasperation as well as confusion because of the need to have a setting established. I usually read history and biography which certainly is different than this type of genre. Overall the book was a joy to read because of the drama the author laid out before me.

One struggle of the book is to understand it clearly. I did lose interest a few times but regained it when the author went to different places. The plot turns from easy to understand from difficult to understand. The reason being that many people were concerned with various locations. The book’s view on cultural identity was confusing as well. One must keep the characters and their dialogues in order to be able to read the book and understanding it efficiently.

I would recommend this book to my family and peers because of the family aspect. The book consisted of the identity and relationship each member of the family had to their country of origin. The book also delved deeply into matters toward relationships. I have not read the first two books of the series though I ask the audience to read them because it will make this book easier to understand. Also the reader must know the history of the Jewish culture before reading this book.
I rate this book 3 out of 4.

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Gates to Tangier
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