Abdelkader Benali
(Morocco, 1975) is an award-winning writer, poet, playwright and curator. His 1996 debut, Bruiloft aan zee (Wedding By the Sea), was an immediate success. His second novel, De langverwachte (The Long-awaited) won him the prestigious 2003 Libris Literature Award. Benali's subjects vary, but sports and the migrant who never really feels at home are recurring themes. He has written novels about his great passion of running, about his travels, and about migrants' cultural identity (Bad Boy). His work has been published internationally. Recent books include the novel Paradijsvogel boven Hoge Woerd (Bird of Paradise over Hoge Woerd, 2022) and Het andere verhaal (The Other Story, 2022), an essay about his research into 75 years of modern Moroccan art.
Past events
Scatterlings
On stories around migration and displacement, with Rešoketšwe Manenzhe (South Africa) and Abdelkader Benali. Moderator: Çiler Ilhan.
Book of My Life: Tommy Wieringa in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
Over Train Dreams by Denis Johnson.
Book of My Life: Andrei Kurkov in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About Martin Eden by Jack London.
Book of My Life: Yasmin Namavar in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About Demian by Herman Hesse.
Book of My Life: Viv Groskop in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.
Book of My Life: Maureen Ghazal in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About A Flat Place by Noreen Masud.
Book of My Life: Benzokarim in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak.
Book of My Life: Yael van der Wouden in conversation with Abdelkader Benali
About In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado.
Book of My Life with Annelies Verbeke
About Bliss and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield
Book of My Life with Alejandra Ortiz
About We the Living by Ayn Rand.
Book of My Life with Sholeh Rezazadeh
About Demian: The Story of Emil Sinclair's Youth (1919) by Hermann Hesse.
Book of My Life with Erik Kriek
About Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
Book of My Life with Simone Atangana Bekono
About Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin.
Book of My Life with Burhan Sönmez
About Tractatus by Ludwig Wittgenstein.
Book of My Life with Angelina Enny
About Novelist as a Vocation by Haruki Murakami
Book of My Life: Auke Hulst
Writers told us about their favourite book, followed by a book-signing session.
Eternal Texts
Writers from Uganda and Israel, and poet and translator Kawa Nemir chose literature, songs, speeches and sacred books with eternal value.
Fit In or Buzz Off
Live polemic: Has multiculturalism failed or not? Referee Abdelkader Benali will decide.
Debate: Is Man Behind all the World's Evil?
Hemmerechts and Benali use their humour and incisiveness to defend opposite views on the question "Is man behind all the world's evil? (and behind him, woman?)". In other words: Is testosterone the source of all evil?
A piece of elite to the people - a polemic
A verbal round of polemics between Abdelkader Benali and Saskia De Coster. They fiercely plead for and against the return of the elite. The referee is Elsbeth Etty. In Dutch.
The Writer and his Body
Books are brainchildren. Until the body claims its place and thus disrupts the equilibrium between spiritual labour and physical readiness. Abdelkader Benali talks to the writers Tim Parks (UK) and Gerbrand Bakker on the relationship between the writer and his body. In English.
Berber poetry - the advance of the Tamazight
Poet Alfred Schaffer talked with Berber poet Fadma el Ouariachi, and the Dutch poets of Moroccan descent Abdelkader Benali and Khadija al Mourabit. Dutch translations.
The great crossing
Desperate Moroccan immigrants are the main characters in the novel Hope and Other Dangerous Desires by Laila Lalami. Writer Abdelkader Benali talks with this Moroccan writer from the United States. English spoken.
Mr Blokker, how do you do that?
Columnist Jan Blokker is interviewed by the writer Abelkader Benali on the secrets of his profession. Dutch spoken.
