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For Bread Alone Paperback – April 1, 2007

by Mohamed Choukri (Author), Paul Bowles (Translator)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 408 ratings
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“A true story of human desperation, shattering in its impact.”—Tennessee Williams

Driven by famine from their home in the Rif, Mohamed’s family walks to Tangiers in search of a better life. But his father is unable to find work and grows violent. Mohamed learns how to charm and steal. During a short spell in a filthy Moroccan jail, a fellow inmate kindles his life-altering love of poetry.

The distinguished writer Paul Bowles, perhaps best known for his novel The Sheltering Sky, collaborated closely with Mohamed Choukri on the translation of For Bread Alone, and penned the introduction.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    169 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Telegram Books
  4. Publication date
    April 1, 2007
  5. Dimensions
    5.1 x 0.7 x 7.9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1846590108
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1846590108
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

'A true document of human desperation, shattering in its impact.' --"Tennessee Williams"

About the Author

Mohamed Choukri (1935-2003) is one of North Africa's most controversial and widely read authors. After a childhood of poverty and petty crime, Choukri learned how to read and write at the age of twenty. He then became a teacher and writer, finally being awarded the chair of Arabic Literature at Ibn Batuta College in Tangier. Paul Bowles is a distinguished writer and translator who is best known for his novel The Sheltering Sky.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Telegram Books; 2nd edition (April 1, 2007)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 169 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1846590108
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1846590108
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.1 x 0.7 x 7.9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 408 ratings

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  1. Paul Bowles

    Paul Bowles

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
408 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Tangier, as it was in 1950's
Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2016
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I have just finished it . It was a wonderful expereince for me, I felt as if I were living in Tangier in 1950's. I picked ladies' pockets together with Mohamed Choukri, the central character. On a cold night I slept in the street, with a cat on me.
I slept with prostitutes and drank wine with them. I smuggled watches from the foreign ship and was pursued by the Customs officials. I joined in the demonstration against French colonialism and was attacked by the police. Now I am inclined to learn Arabic, like Mohamed, who bought a primer of Arabic and began to learn the language. His family was so poor that he did not have any chance to learn how to read and write it, until he was twenty years old. I have jut spent a couple of days in the Moroccan dream world.
7 people found this helpful
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Stuart I. Levin
4.0 out of 5 stars The engaging tale of a street boy in far of Moracco
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2023
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This follows roughly a year ir so in the life of a street kid in Moracco. The story is an engaging chronicle, often graphic and is a tale of overcoming great adversities personal in scope and often graphic. Essentially, there is not a lot of hope left for the subject at the ending except for the suggestion that the desire to achieve literacy may present a modicum of promise. While the story is often compelling, the circumstances of the character are dire. A postscript as to what may have become this youth would have greatly added the picture which is otherwise well wrought.
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Ladyce West
5.0 out of 5 stars A life on the fringe
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2002
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I liked this book. That surprised me. This speaks directly to strength in narration and artistry of Mr. Choukri, who shows us, in this first volume of his autobiography, the despair brought about by ignorance and poverty. Our young man's apparent lack of hope for a better future is made clear from the start. In his teens, born in Marocco, during the French domination, he struggles to find the rules and reasons for the world around him. I say apparent lack of hope, because after the first few paragraphs we already know that he is sensitive, smart and will attempt to survive as best he can, without any help from his family or society. In this respect, I was satisfied early on, for I sensed it would be all right to attach my emotions to this hero; that he would not betray my confidence. Mr. Choukri's narration is also masterful in the depiction of the most despicable acts of violence both physical and moral. He is detached. So we can also keep our safe distance.
I confess to having a special reason for reading this book. Since I spent some time in the early 1980s in Oran, Algeria, I have been intrigued with the peoples of North Africa. And this book takes place in many of the cities and towns that are familiar to me. What surprises is to see that even though there was a good thirty years difference between the time this story took place and the 1980s, there were vestiges that for some, things still remained. I can only hope that there has been considerable improvement in the past 20 years.
This is a book that makes us think. And even though the subject: a disenfranchised youth in the life of petty crimes in the fringe of society is not unusual in the literature of developing countries, it is important to return to these themes once in a while, getting out of our comforatble, well educated bubbles, and rethink our own contributions to world around us.
I am a better person for having read this book. That's a sign of excellence.
45 people found this helpful
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Paige Vanko
3.0 out of 5 stars For Bread Alone
Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2013
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It was a very well written book and was extremely interesting but lacked an organized plot that expressed a common theme until the very last sentence.
One person found this helpful
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Dina
5.0 out of 5 stars Raw reading
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2018
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This is crude and honest. When picking this book, you must put on a pause all your ethical thinking on what is sexist, racist, and morally unacceptable. This is not a book to enjoy. Reading of this book is painful, but in the end, I saw it as a manifest against war and against violence. How a child, who received nothing but hate when growing up, could digest his pain into words, and could overcome it in a way.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars A necessary read
Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2019
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Hard life, harsh descriptions, real, raw and disturbing. Choukri lays bare what most only imagine, or glimpse into the lives of those economically, educationally and socially truly impoverished. I thought I knew Morocco, but now am reminded of just how much more I have to learn. This is not a comfortable read and the English translation leaves some transitions difficult to traverse. Still, his story needs telling and told by him makes the reader’s time well spent.
2 people found this helpful
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Haifa Hourani
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the greatest book I've ever read!
Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2012
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Inflectional, moving and daring biography of shukri who lived a hopeless life in hopeless war times. This great book that was banned for many years in the Middle east was interpreted and published in Francais, Spanish and English before it was published in it's original language: Arabic. This book, though could be distrubing for many people; I was able to find so much meaning in it.
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Michael J
5.0 out of 5 stars A Life in Morocco
Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2013
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I found this book very informative as to what life can be like for a poor Moroccan peasant. It was fascinating, and seemed very honest and sincere. In spite of the hard life the protagonist has, he manages to go on in order to eat and live. It was a really good read.
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Robert McCully
5.0 out of 5 stars Captures the depravity of survival
Reviewed in Canada on October 3, 2021
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I like how it exposes Tangier in the 60s as I saw it while there during that time. Very real.
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Carlo
5.0 out of 5 stars Dal letame nascono i fior
Reviewed in Italy on December 11, 2020
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“For bread alone” è la biografia dei primi vent’anni dell’autore, fino a quando cioè scoppiò in lui la decisione di imparare a leggere e scrivere.

È un libro chiaro, duro, crudo. E anche coinvolgente, sensuale, tremendo. Insomma: vero.
Discorso diretto e indiretto si mescolano quasi senza distinzione, come in racconto orale fluido avvincente, talvolta incredibile nella sua disarmante semplicità.
Penso che la sintesi dell’opera possa stare nel verso di De Andrè “dal letame nascono i fior”. Aggiungo che dunque c’è speranza per tutti gli uomini con buona volontà perché “basta” una scintilla a cambiare completamente una vita.
Da divorare, letteralmente.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Education
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 21, 2020
Verified Purchase
My goodness, we have all heard how hard life Can be for people in these poorer countries but this book is a real eye opener of the day to day suffering, so tragic. My heart goes out to them and I'm so glad for those who manage to escape such an existence. It's true - education is the key to a better life.
2 people found this helpful
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Rey
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!
Reviewed in Germany on June 19, 2018
Verified Purchase
This book is a great Purchase for anyone who would like to take on another perspective of life.
The Author wrote this biographical piece in a way that caught me immediately.

This book was able to make me sad and open my eyes to things that were hidden due to the shape of my protected world.
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Abdiel
5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting and Well-Crafted Prose
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 16, 2020
Verified Purchase
This is a beautifully written coming-of-age narrative set in Morocco, and searingly honest, dealing with the horrors of parental abuse and poverty, followed by a teenager's sexual awakening, his experiences both in procuring and providing prostitution, growing up amid violence, petty crime, and Spanish occupation. Riveting and well-crafted prose. Highly recommend.

A LeRoy
4 people found this helpful
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