Hafid Bouazza (born 8 March 1970 in Oujda

Oujda

Oujda is a city in eastern Morocco with an estimated population of 1 million. The city is located about 15 kilometers west of Algeria and about 60 kilometers south of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the Oriental Region of Morocco and the birthplace of the current Algerian president,...

, Morocco

Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

) is a Moroccan-Dutch

Moroccan-Dutch

The terms Moroccan-Dutch or Dutch-Moroccans refer to immigrants from Morocco to the Netherlands and their descendants. They are one of the larger allochtoon groups, making up 10.4% of the country's total population of foreign background....

 writer. Bouazza came to the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 in October 1977 as a seven-year-old boy. He lived with his parents in the village Arkel

Arkel

Arkel is a village in the Dutch province of South Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Giessenlanden, and lies about 3 km north of Gorinchem.Arkel is a former municipality. In 1986 it became part of Giessenlanden....

, near Gorinchem

Gorinchem

Gorinchem , also called Gorkum , is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 21.99 km² of which 3.03 km² is water...

, until he went to study Arabic language and literature at the University of Amsterdam. He received the E. du Perron prize for his 1996 debut novel

Debut novel

A debut novel is the first novel an author publishes. Debut novels are the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to publish in the future...

 De voeten van Abdullah (The feet of Abdullah). Later works include "Momo" and "Solomon", in 2001 "Een beer in bontjas (A bear in a fur coat)" and play adaptions "Apollien", "De slachting in Parijs (The massacre in Paris) and Othello

Othello

The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...

" and "Het monster met de twee ruggen : een kameropera (The beast with two backs: a libretto

Libretto

A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...

)". His 2004 novel Paravion won the 2004 "De Gouden Uil" prize. His novel "Spotvogel" appeared in 2009, after years of silence. Bouazza, an atheist, is known for his criticism of Islam

Criticism of Islam

Criticism of Islam has existed since Islam's formative stages. Early written criticism came from Christians, prior to the ninth century, many of whom viewed Islam as a radical Christian heresy...

. His sister Hassnae

Hassnae Bouazza

Hassnae Bouazza is Moroccan-Dutch journalist, writer, columnist, translator and television programme maker. Bouazza was born in the city of Oujda, close to Algerian border. She moved with her family including brother Hafid to The Netherlands to join her father, who worked there as a guest worker...

 is a noted journalist.

Works

• 1996 De voeten van Abdullah (The feet of Abdullah)
• 1998 Momo (Momo)
• 1998 Apollien (Apollien)
• 2000 Schoon in elk oog is wat het bemint (Beauty in each eye is what it loves)
• 2001 Een beer in bontjas: autobiografische beschouwingen (A bear in a fur coat: autobiographical considerations)
• 2001 De slachting in Parijs (The massacre in Paris)
• 2001 Salomon (Salomon)
• 2002 Rond voor rond of als een pikhouweel (Round for round or as a pickaxe)
• 2003 Othello (Othello)
• 2003 Het monster met de twee ruggen : een kameropera (The beast with two backs: a libretto
  Libretto
  A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
  
  )
• 2003 Paravion (Paravion)
• 2005 Het temmen van een feeks (The taming of the Shrew)
• 2006 De zon kussen op dit nachtuur (Kissing the sun at this hour of the night)
• 2006 De vierde gongslag (The fourth beat of the gong)
• 2006 Om wat er nog komen moet : pornografica (Because of what's to come: pornopraphics)
• 2009 Spotvogel (Hippolais)