Destination Casablanca: Exile, Espionage, and the Battle for North Africa in World War II

This book is not for everyone but it was exactly what I wanted. Lots of details about a mostly unknown part of WW2, which is what I like !

This history of the Allies’ invasion of North Africa has three parts: the background, the battles, and the aftermath. You will need to exercise a bit of patience when you read the background of the story because it seems to take forever for the Allies—meaning the U.S. and Great Britain in this case—to decide on an invasion plan. I was confused by the chapters on Vichy France because there were too many characters in that story and the politics were murky. Were the leaders of Vichy Frances collaborators with the Nazis or just loyalists trying to save their country in any way possible? But when the author finally gets to the invasion and subsequent battles, this book gets really fascinating. She weaves together the military matters and the fascinating characters involved, like the superstar Josephine Baker, the Freud family in exile in Casablanca, and William Donovan, who created the OSS, progenitor of the CIA. The story of Operation Torch is particularly interesting because it was the first counterstrike against the Germans since they had blitzkrieged their way across Europe only to get mired down in Russia. Had Rommel been successful in North Africa and repelled, say, the attack on Algiers, he could have taken Egypt and the Suez Canal and the Nazis would have controlled the Mediterranean. But neither Rommel nor any other German leaders learned about the coming invasions—they were caught totally by surprise, and the Allies’ seizure of French North Africa was the key to the invasion of Italy. The aftermath of Operation Torch was not nearly as interesting as the battles until the final chapters that incorporate the mystique of Casablanca as reflected in the Humphrey Bogart movie, which was released before the actual invasions. All in all, Destination Casablanca is a well researched story that is brilliantly told.

First-rate history writing, and a suspenseful page-turner even though we know how it all came out. (Spoiler alert: the Allies win.) Hindley has full command of the history of the operation and of the people involved, and the pacing and thoroughness of her writing never lag. Depictions of the people involved -- Americans, Europeans, Moroccans -- amount to fully rounded portraits, but she never tries to speculate beyond the facts at her command, derived from diaries, letters, official memoirs and other documents. Descriptions of the physical surroundings and their importance are also helpful and very effective. I originally got the book because I thought it would be fun to have the actual historical context for the Bogart/Bergman movie, but in the process of reading I've gotten so caught up in the real story that it's taken complete precedence over the flick -- the history of the invasion and the ensuing battles and outcomes are thrilling even though (as I've said) we know the outcome. Wonderfully informative and energizing book, start to finish, and highly recommended.

Hindley has written a hugely impressive book on an overlooked yet pivotal chapter in WWII history that informs and entertains. The level of research that went into this work comes through on every page.

If you're a fan of the classic movie "Casablanca," than this is for you. The author gives an excellent account of what the real Casablanca was like during WWII--the spies, the refugees, the Americans (including Josephine Baker), the Moroccans, and the divided French. There are a lot of historical figures who pass through these pages and the book could have benefited from some cutting--some of the people seem extraneous to the main storyline and clutter up the narrative. Nonetheless, this book takes you back in time to a place full of hope, fear, intrigue, and, finally, triumph and freedom.