Photographs
Ann and Yann Arthus-Bertrand , Morocco Seen From The Air (Vendome Press, UK/US). Seek out this stunning, large-format book published in 1994 - it is a revelation - Moroccan cities, valleys, kasbahs, carpet souks captured from the air. Browse after a trip and odd, apparently impenetrable pockets of cities that you've walked through will begin to fall into place. Other photos simply have the appearance of abstract paintings.

Paul Bowles , Photographs (Scalo, US). Paul Bowles proved himself a talented photographer in this book of images from the 1930s to 1960s. The stunning black and white pictures are complemented by editor Simon Bishoff's recorded conversations with Bowles in Tangier between 1989 and 1991.

Margaret Courtney-Clarke , Imazighen: The Vanishing Traditions of Berber Women (Thames & Hudson, UK). The photographs here are of Berber communities across Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. They are intimate portraits of communities at home and show the harsh nature of life and its constant work, as well as the beauty of the crafts and landscape.

Mary Cross , Morocco: Sahara to the Sea (Abbeville Press, US). A lavish book of images, with brief text from the photographer, a preface by Paul Bowles, and an introduction by the Moroccan novelist, Tahar Ben Jalloun.

Hugues Demeude, Jacques Bravo, Xavier Richer , Morocco (Taschen, Germany). This is a stunning assembly of photographs, published in 1998, and hard to beat (in quality and price) if you want a photo book to browse before or after a trip.

Alan Keohane , Berbers of the Atlas (Hamish Hamilton, UK, o/p). A marvellous collection of colour photos of daily life in the Atlas. Published in the mid-1990s, it is well worth tracking down.

Jean-Marc Tingaud and Tahar Ben Jelloun , Medinas: Morocco's Hidden Cities (Assouline, France; Thames & Hudson, UK/US). These are wonderful photos of the mansions and palaces of Fes, Marrakesh and other cities, whose existence you could hardly imagine from the street outside. Tingaud's photos are accompanied by poems from the Moroccan novelist Ben Jelloun.

Anthropology
There is extensive anthropology literature on Morocco. Reviews below are just a selection of the more popular, not overly academic, books in print.

Donna Lee Bowen and Evelyn A. Early ( eds ), Everyday Life in the Muslim Middle East (Indiana University Press, US). Despite its broad title, around a third of this anthology deals with Morocco. It illustrates the experiences of ordinary men, women and children from Afghanistan to Morocco, through essays, short stories and poems. Highly recommended.

Michael Brett and Elizabeth Fentress , The Berbers (Blackwells, UK). A valuable recent (1997) overview of the Berber peoples of Morocco, Algeria, and beyond, ranging through anthropology, history and literature.

Shlomo Deshen , The Mellah Society: Jewish Community Life in Sherifian Morocco (University of Chicago Press, US). A study of economic activity and political organization in the mellahs prior to the Protectorate.

Kevin Dwyer , Moroccan Dialogues: Anthropology in Question (Waveland Press, US). A series of recorded conversations with a farmer from near Taroudannt, ranging from attitudes to women, religion and village life to popular Moroccan perceptions of the Jews, the French and even the hippies.

Elizabeth Fernea , A Street in Marrakesh (Waveland Press, US). Highly readable account of a woman anthropologist's period of study and experiences in Marrakesh.

Ernest Gellner , Saints of the Atlas (University of Chicago Press, US). The bulk of this book is an in-depth study of a group of zaouia villages in the High Atlas, but there are excellent introductory chapters on Morocco's recent past and the concept and origins of Berbers.

David Hart , Tribe and Society in Rural Morocco (Frank Cass, UK/US). A collection of essays, dating from 1985-2000, around the themes of tribalism and Berberism in Morocco. More accessible than it sounds, with titles such as Scratch a Moroccan, Find a Berber .

Fatima Mernissi , Doing Daily Battle: Interviews with Moroccan Women (The Women's Press/Rutgers UP). Eleven women - carpet weavers, rural and factory workers, teachers - talk about all aspects of their lives, from work and housing to marriage. A fascinating insight into a resolutely private world.

Islam
The Koran (Oxford University Press, UK/US). The Word of God as handed down to the Prophet is the basis of all Islam, so essential reading for anyone interested. There are dozens of editions but the Oxford edition is probably the clearest and liveliest translation.

S. H. Nasr , Ideas and Realities of Islam (Collins, UK/US). A good general introduction.

Maxime Rodinson , Muhammad (Penguin, UK/Pantheon, US). Challenging account of the Prophet's life and the immediate impact of his ideology.

Art, architecture and crafts
In addition to the recommendations below, a number of large, glossy books on Moroccan jewellery, gardens, paintings, manuscripts, carpets, buildings, usually with French texts, are to be found in most of the larger bookshops in Morocco - notably at the...
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Food
Robert Carrier , Taste of Morocco (Arrow, UK; o/p). Robert Carrier lived in Marrakesh for several months of each year and this beautifully illustrated cookbook reflects his love of Morocco and its distinctive cuisine - particularly the...
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Moroccan fiction/biography
By far the largest body of Moroccan fiction/biography published in English is the translations by the American writer Paul Bowles, who lived in Tangier from the 1940s until his death in 1999. Many of the small press editions duck in and out of print but they are reasonably available if you do an Internet search; prices are now very high for first editions but reprints are reasonable

Set in Morocco
Once again, the late Paul Bowles is the outstanding figure in American and European fiction set in Morocco, so no apologies for splitting this section into "Bowles" and "Others". Though the "Others" do include a couple of gems