Leïla Slimani, a critically acclaimed French-Moroccan novelist, celebrates I’ll Take The Fire, the last in her trilogy of novels based on her family’s roots in revolutionary Morocco. She weaves the brilliant story of one woman’s global search for freedom and purpose.
Leïla Slimani is a critically acclaimed French-Moroccan novelist, journalist, and cultural figure whose work has made her one of the most influential voices in contemporary francophone literature. She is the author of The Perfect Nanny, for which she became the first Moroccan woman to win France’s most prestigious literary prize, the Goncourt. Her other books include Adèle, Sex and Lies, In the Country of Others, and Watch Us Dance, which are the first and second parts of a trilogy of novels based on her family’s roots in revolutionary Morocco. She is President Emmanuel Macron’s personal representative for the promotion of the French language and culture, and was the chair of the jury for the 2023 International Booker Prize.
This year Leïla Slimani concludes her trilogy of novels with I’ll Take The Fire, the story of a woman who, after growing up in socially conservative Morocco, is looking for somewhere she can feel free to be herself. Against the backdrop of the fall of the Berlin Wall and 9/11, Slimani explores sexuality, freedom, and purpose in this brave and poetic novel.
Nadja Spiegelman is the author of the memoir I’m Supposed To Protect You From All This and five books for children, including the award-winning Lost in NYC. She is currently a culture editor at The New York Times. Spiegelman previously worked as the editor-in-chief of Astra Magazine and the online editor of The Paris Review. Her writing has appeared in New York Review of Books, The New Yorker, NYT Book Review, The Cut, and more.
Photo by Francesca Mantovani