The simple past cover

The simple past

by Driss Chraïbi

Upon its release in 1954, the book had the effect of a bombshell, both in France and Morocco, which was fighting for its independence. With a rare violence, the book projected the French-speaking North African novel to major topics: weight of Islam, Women in Arab society, cultural identity, conflict of civilizations.

More by Driss Chraïbi

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?