Something Strange, Like Hunger

Author(s): Malika Moustadraf

Location(s): Morocco

Genre(s): Short Stories

Era(s): Modern

Malika Moustadraf is a cult feminist icon in contemporary Moroccan literature, celebrated for her uncompromising, troubling depiction of life on the margins and her stark interrogation of gender and sexuality in North Africa. Something Strange, Like Hunger presents the collected short stories by Moustadraf. Here, a light shines brightly on the unheard: a sex worker hustling on the streets; a wife, kept home by her dominating husband, passes the day flirting online with strangers; a patient dying of kidney disease and a mother who sets out to thwart her prospective son-in-law by falsifying her daughter’s virginity test. Through brilliantly executed twists and rich slang, Moustadraf takes an unflinching look at the female body and double standards around desire. Something Strange, Like Hunger is a sharp provocation to patriarchal power and a celebration of the life and genius of one of Morocco’s preeminent writers.

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