leo the africanus

This year I joined a book discussion group and we read a book that I never would have picked up on my own, even though it was an award-winning novel. Leo Africanus by Amin Maalouf is a novel based on the true-life story of Hasan al-Wazzin, who lived in the 16th century. Maalouf weaves culture, philosophy, religion, politics and history that spans 40 years and five major disparate cities with humor and intellect -- all in 360 pages. There is nothing superfluous. The prose is unstrained, yet rich and vivid. Definitely reread this book immediately to savor the literary caches you may have missed on your first read.