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<book id="7084065">
  <title><![CDATA[Secret Son]]></title>
  <isbn><![CDATA[1565129792]]></isbn>
  <isbn13><![CDATA[9781565129795]]></isbn13>
      <description><![CDATA[]]></description>
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  <original_publication_day type="integer">21</original_publication_day>
  <original_publication_month type="integer">4</original_publication_month>
  <original_publication_year type="integer">2009</original_publication_year>
  <original_title>Secret Son</original_title>
  <rating_dist>total:94|5:20|4:34|3:26|2:12|1:2|</rating_dist>
  <ratings_count type="integer">94</ratings_count>
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  <reviews_count type="integer">260</reviews_count>
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  <average_rating><![CDATA[3.62]]></average_rating>
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  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7084065-secret-son]]></url>
  <authors>
        <author id="81319">
      <name><![CDATA[Laila Lalami]]></name>
      <role><![CDATA[]]></role>
      <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/81319.Laila_Lalami]]></url>
      <average_rating><![CDATA[3.71]]></average_rating>
      <ratings_count><![CDATA[349]]></ratings_count>
      <text_reviews_count><![CDATA[95]]></text_reviews_count>
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    <review id="52713907">
    <user id="1658297">
    <name><![CDATA[Erika]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Canada]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1658297-erika]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>4</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sat Apr 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Apr 14 18:21:55 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Apr 20 06:51:37 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[If I had to sum this book up in one quick phrase, it would be: hauntingly beautiful.<br/><br/>Lalami's writing style is beautiful. Sophisticated but not too over the top. Easy to read, but not juvenile. The story itself I could not stop reading. Youssef's relationships with his mother, his friends...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/52713907">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/52713907]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="48657595">
    <user id="1301372">
    <name><![CDATA[Bill]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Silver Spring, MD]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1301372-bill]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>2</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[anyone, especially anyone interested in Morocco]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Apr 07 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Mar 08 20:49:04 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Apr 07 14:27:38 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[In this superb short novel, Laila Lalami deftly limns the rise and fall of Youssef El Mekki, unacknowledged bastard son of prominent businessman, disillusioned activist, and bon vivant Nabil El Amrani.  Seemingly sprung from the trap of the Casablanca slums when he learns that his father, far from b...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/48657595">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/48657595]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="52038741">
    <user id="1056436">
    <name><![CDATA[Michelle]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Stamford, CT]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1056436-michelle]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
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  <read_at>Tue Apr 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Apr 09 02:37:27 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Apr 16 11:00:48 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I was so excited when I found out I won this book from the GoodReads giveaways.  The book came rather quickly directly from the publisher.  <br/>This was written by a Moroccan author who lives in California.  I enjoyed the book.  I could imagine some of the descriptions having been to Morocco.  The...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/52038741">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/52038741]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="51685468">
    <user id="1579437">
    <name><![CDATA[Lucian]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Madelia, MN]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1579437-lucian]]></url>
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    <book>
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  <ratings_count type="integer">94</ratings_count>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sat Apr 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Apr 06 09:20:52 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Apr 11 10:49:25 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Simply, Secret Son is passionate and exciting. The reader drops into Lalami's Morocco and begins to recognize the the city and the people. It becomes home a home within words.<br/><br/>The plot constantly pushes forward and the characters are compelling and complex. It's hard to finish because you...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51685468">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51685468]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="47011527">
    <user id="1393600">
    <name><![CDATA[Jason]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Singapore, Singapore]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1393600-jason-lundberg]]></url>
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  <isbn13>9781565124943</isbn13>
  <ratings_count type="integer">94</ratings_count>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">35</text_reviews_count>
  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1235188722m/4654809.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Wed Mar 04 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Fri Feb 20 19:58:49 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Mar 04 23:16:43 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Once again, Lalami brings Morocco to life as a vibrant conflicted country, with a deep heritage in both the East and West. Youssef el-Mekki is a Casablancan slum-dweller on his way to uni; smart and resourceful, and fatherless, or so he thinks. Lalami's prose is thoughtful and evocative, revealing h...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47011527">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47011527]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="58896882">
    <user id="166684">
    <name><![CDATA[Mary]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/166684-mary]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1235188722m/4654809.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sun May 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Jun 08 13:59:56 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Jun 08 13:59:56 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Youssef El-Mekki grew up in Casablanca, in the slums of Hay An Najat where houseflies &quot;grazed on piles of trash, competing with cows and sheep for tea grounds, vegetable peels, and empty containers of yogurt.&quot; One young man by circumstance, another by birthright, at nineteen Youssef learns...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58896882">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/58896882]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="56015379">
    <user id="1883049">
    <name><![CDATA[Feminist]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Calcutta, 28, India]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1883049-feminist-review]]></url>
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    <book>
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  <ratings_count type="integer">94</ratings_count>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
  <image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1235188722m/4654809.jpg</image_url>
  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>1</votes>
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      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Thu May 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed May 13 21:00:56 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed May 13 21:01:05 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Having read Laila Lalami’s short fiction collection Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits, I was thrilled to find out she was working on her first novel, Secret Son. Often when I read first-time novelists, I notice some difficulty with dialogue (my own biggest downfall when I’m writing fiction), awk...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/56015379">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/56015379]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="47876057">
    <user id="783700">
    <name><![CDATA[Malcolm]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Athens, GA]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/783700-malcolm]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Fri Feb 27 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Mar 01 07:03:24 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Mar 04 16:51:24 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[The following review initially posted on POD Book Reviews and More: <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://podbram.blogspot.com/2009/02/secret-son.html" title="http://podbram.blogspot.com/2009/02/secret-son.html">http://podbram.blogspot.com/2009/02/secr...</a><br/><br/>Youssef and his mother Rachida live in a one-room house with no windows and a tin roof held in place by stones in a Casablanca slum. When it rains, the roof leaks. When it’s no...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47876057">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/47876057]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="51120935">
    <user id="837540">
    <name><![CDATA[Pamela]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Fort Collins, CO]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/837540-pamela]]></url>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Apr 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Apr 01 01:42:33 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Apr 21 22:09:41 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[4.5 Stars! After reading some of the other reviews I wish I could be as eloquent as they have been but alas, I am not a writer--just a simple reader. Nevertheless, I continue. I was surprised at how taken I was with this novel. Would I have picked it up off a bookseller's shelf? I'm not sure. Howeve...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51120935">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51120935]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="71629023">
    <user id="2583307">
    <name><![CDATA[Lillian]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Seattle, WA]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2583307-lillian]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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      </shelves>
  <recommended_for><![CDATA[Fans of Monica Ali]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[This is the 'Seattle Reads' selection for 2010]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Sun Sep 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Sep 17 21:08:48 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Sep 20 19:36:28 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Youssef El Mekki has been raised by his mother in a one room house in the slums of Casablanca.  At eighteen our hero discovers that his father, whom he thought dead was a very alive and wealthy businessman.  They finally meet and learn about each other but learn more about themselves.<br/>I thought...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/71629023">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/71629023]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="72739680">
    <user id="638271">
    <name><![CDATA[Abby]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Seattle, WA]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/638271-abby]]></url>
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  <isbn>1565124944</isbn>
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  <ratings_count type="integer">94</ratings_count>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4654809.Secret_Son</link>
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    <rating>2</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <shelves>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Tue Sep 29 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Sep 27 23:40:45 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Oct 03 13:23:29 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Meh. Another lackluster choice for Seattle Reads (this is the pick for 2010). I really can't see what the book groups will have to talk about except (as one of my colleagues who shall remain unnamed commented) all the ways this book doesn't work. As a family drama/tragedy it's not bad reading, espec...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/72739680">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/72739680]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="80439794">
    <user id="169725">
    <name><![CDATA[Baklavahalva]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>        
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <date_added>Wed Dec 09 13:14:37 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Dec 09 13:20:35 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[The book gains in beauty and intensity and heartbreak as it gets going.  What I love about Lalami's novel is that it more or less equates ruthless West-oriented capitalists and Saudi-loving fundamentalists (while never resorting to caricature with regards to either).  Everybody preys on innocence.  ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/80439794">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/80439794]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="57998037">
    <user id="92127">
    <name><![CDATA[Jesse]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Philadelphia, PA]]></location>        
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <date_added>Sun May 31 18:10:21 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun May 31 18:13:41 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[Lalami is also a fabulous blogger and critic, and this is her first novel.  Well, Hope and Other Danger pursuits was a series of similar stories.  Here she combines a rather soap-operatic plot (fatherless son discovers truth of his origins) in a very nonsentinmental fashion.  She also inverts the us...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57998037">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57998037]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="59883457">
    <user id="340133">
    <name><![CDATA[Joanne]]></name>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Jun 16 09:01:38 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Jun 16 09:07:53 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Even though I only gave this book 3 stars I still recommend reading it.  The tale is spun in Morocco and written in a journalistic style with insertions of descriptive adjectives that seemed more like reportage than prose.  We follow the downward spiral of a young man who is a victim of his birth, s...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59883457">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59883457]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="56003089">
    <user id="620680">
    <name><![CDATA[Kate]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Quincy, MA]]></location>        
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <date_added>Wed May 13 19:05:28 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed May 13 19:12:31 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[I am surprised to see that this book has so many high reviews. I was happy to win it as part of the Goodreads &quot;firstreads&quot; giveaway, and I enjoyed it, but it was certainly nothing special. I found it a bit cliched and predictable, and I was very disappointed in the ending. I preferred the ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/56003089">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/56003089]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="66717375">
    <user id="1056996">
    <name><![CDATA[Nerak]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Lincoln City, OR]]></location>        
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Aug 09 00:26:54 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Aug 09 00:33:50 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Absorbing story of a young man who has grown up in the slums of Casablanca, Morocco, struggling to maintain his college education when he uncovers secrets about his father's existence and his mother's lies, causing him to have doubts about his future - set against background of class and politics in...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/66717375">more...</a>]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/66717375]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="60942708">
    <user id="2450775">
    <name><![CDATA[Tikvah]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[The United States]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/2450775-tikvah-betancourt]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Jun 24 11:25:39 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jun 24 11:27:34 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Great book, kept me hooked until the end. It takes a while for the theme to pick up but once it does I didn't want to put it down. The only disappointment was the ending. It ended too abrutly and I  would have liked to see the story play out from the ending. ]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60942708]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="53695729">
    <user id="109504">
    <name><![CDATA[Clifford]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Staunton, VA]]></location>        
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/109504-clifford]]></url>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
  <average_rating>3.62</average_rating>
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    <rating>5</rating>
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  <read_at>Wed Apr 29 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Apr 23 05:21:57 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Apr 30 04:45:29 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[This is a beautifully told tale of a young man who discovers the truth about his origins. Youssef is coming of age at a time when Morocco is torn between powerful social forces, and he is nearly powerless. The story is tragic in that its outcome seems inevitable. What can one poor man do in the face...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/53695729">more...</a>]]></body>
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</review>
    <review id="71019005">
    <user id="1322431">
    <name><![CDATA[Sunshine]]></name>
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  <title>Secret Son</title>
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    <rating>2</rating>
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  <read_at>Sun Sep 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Sep 12 20:18:02 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Sep 20 13:53:27 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[While this book had tremendous potential, overall, it lacked depth and emotion.  While those are things I might be able to live with the ending was terrible...an after thought at best.  A good story idea, but the characters were under developed and I just couldn't get into this book.]]></body>
    <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/71019005]]></url>
</review>
    <review id="62953973">
    <user id="913137">
    <name><![CDATA[Melonie]]></name>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Fri Jul 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Fri Jul 10 14:21:36 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Jul 10 14:23:49 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This free read from Chory was a bathtub book for the last few weeks. The story was compelling and would have earned four stars until the ending, it reads like the author was on a deadline. Worth reading.]]></body>
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