How different are Moroccan-Jewish women from their mothers and grandmothers, and how do they differ from their Muslim counterparts? What are the antagonisms between Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews?

Sarah Lévy, born of an Algerian father and a Moroccan mother and raised in Morocco until her family moved to France when she was 17, is the main character in Baisse les yeux, Sarah, an autobiographical novel by Paule Darmon (1980). In what promises to be a fascinating lecture, Professor Lucille Cairns will examine what it means to be a North African Jewish woman as reflected in the writings of Paule Darmon and other Jewish authors.

Lucille is a Professor in the French Department, School of Modern Languages and Cultures at Durham University. She has published numerous books, articles and chapters in books, most recently on Jewish women writers in French. Her next book, to be published by Legenda in early 2011, is entitled "Post-War Jewish Women's Writing in French".