Shah's entertaining account of the transformation of a spectacularly crumbled palace in Casablanca, abandoned for a decade. Shah is a marvelous writer and storyteller, interweaving Moroccan customs and history and deft portraits of neighbors, craftsmen and others. He captures the mix of old and new, absurd and moving, frustration and joy of Morocco. The house was not just crumbling but occupied by spirits.  (MRC66, $13.00)

Best of 2006
Morocco