Margriet de Moor

(Noordwijk, 1941) in her latest book, the volume of essays Als een hond zijn blinde baas (Like a Dog Its Blind Boss; 2007), how she began her writing career. 'Let's see if I can write a story,' she thought one Monday morning. And writing she could. Her first volume of short stories, Op de rug gezien (Seen From the Back; 1988) won her a Gouden Ezelsoor (golden donkey-ear) and her novel debut Eerst grijs dan wit dan blauw (First Grey Then White Then Blue; 1991) won her the AKO Literature Prize. That opened the way to international fame. The book has been published in more than ten languages. Chance and its dramatic consequences and the 'mystery of the Other' play an important role in De Moor's work. History is also an important theme. She devoted a book to the haps and mishaps of the gypsies in 15th century Europe, De hertog van Egypte (The Duke of Egypt) and De Verdonkene (Drowned) deals with the great flood of 1953 in the Netherlands. De Moor studied piano, singing, art history and archeology and made videofilms before she started writing.