Books by Valerie K. Orlando

Since 1999 and the death of King Hassan II, Morocco has experienced a dramatic social transformation. This book focuses on Moroccan films produced and distributed from 1999 to the present. It introduces American readers to the richness in theme and scope of the cinematic production of Morocco.

Contemporary French writing on the Maghreb-that part of Africa above the Sahara-is truly postmodern in scope, the rich product of multifaceted histories promoting the blending of two worlds, two identities, two cultures, and two languages.Nomadic

Disputing the claim that Algerian writing during the struggle against French colonial rule dealt almost exclusively with revolutionary themes, The Algerian New Novel shows how Algerian authors writing in French actively contributed to the experimental forms of the period, expressing a new age literarily as well as politically and culturally. Looking at canonical Algerian literature as part of the larger literary production in French during decolonization, Valrie K. Orlando considers how novels by Rachid Boudjedra, Mohammed Dib, Assia Djebar, Nabile Fars, Yamina Mechakra, and Kateb Yacine both influenced and were reflectors of the sociopolitical and cultural transformation that took place during this period in Algeria. Although their themes were rooted in Algeria, the avant-garde writing styles of these authors were influenced by early twentieth-century American modernists, the New Novelists of 1940s-50s France, and African American authors of the 1950s-60s. This complex mix of influences led Algerian writers to develop a unique modern literary aesthetic to express their world, a tradition of experimentation and fragmentation that still characterizes the work of contemporary Algerian francophone writers.

New African Cinema examines the pressing social, cultural, economic, and historical issues explored by African filmmakers in the new millennium by offering an overview of the development of postcolonial African cinema as it has evolved since the 1960s into the new medium, known as "new African cinema," it is today.