Writer and journalist Hassnae Bouazza will talk about her book Een koffer vol citroenen (A suitcase full of lemons) at the Bibliotheek Schilderswijk. She will also read excerpts from it and answer questions from the audience. The book, a loving portrait of a mother and a daughter, powerfully depicts the confusing feeling of displacement and the comfort of tastes and smells.

In a biscuit shop at Casablanca airport, Hassnae Bouazza realises that with the sudden death of her mother, she has lost more than just a parent. In Een koffer vol citroenen, she describes their loving relationship, the raw pain of loss, the wonderful funeral director with whom the family is saddled, and the search for a happy life without an unmistakable home.

Hassnae Bouazza (Morocco, 1973) is a journalist, columnist, translator, researcher and programme maker. She publishes in various media (including NRC and Linda) and runs her own online glossy for culture lovers, Aicha Qandisha. She compiled a collection of stories about Arab women, Achter de sluier (Behind the Veil, 1999); 2013 saw the publication of her book Arabieren kijken (Arabs Watching, about ordinary people in the Arab world.

Together with Michelin-starred chef Soenil Bahadoer, Hassnae wrote Spicy Chef (2020) and Streetfood (2022), two culinary books with stories and Surinamese-Indian recipes.

Festival tip 1: for the full festival experience, go to the grand festival events Friday Night Unlimited (24 January) and Saturday Night Unlimited (25 January)! Both nights you choose your own route along some 20 performances, readings and conversations on five stages in Theater aan het Spui and Filmhuis Den Haag. English and Dutch spoken.

Festivaltip 2: as Writers Unlimited presents literature festivals 30 years, we are celebrating our anniversary with a show full of music, dance and literature at Amare (Danstheater) on Sunday afternoon, 26 January. You will see and hear Spinvis, Shirma Rouse, XILLAN, Babs Gons, Joost Oomen, Zaïre Krieger, Claudia Karapanou Flamenco Trio, Royal Conservatoire Dance and Pulse led by Eli Wing, among others. Tickets 11 euros (under 29s or students), or 16 - 35 euros (depending on seat chosen).

From 23 to 26 January 2025, Writers Unlimited International Literature Festival The Hague is to be found in theatres, libraries and schools throughout the city: from Theater aan het Spui, Filmhuis Den Haag, Amare and Paard to Theater Dakota, Theater De Vaillant, the Laakkwartier, Nieuw Waldeck, Schilderswijk and Ypenburg libraries, the Institute of Social Studies and De Haagse Hogeschool. With over 120 writers, poets and spoken-word artists and musicians from the Netherlands and abroad. With readings, prose, poetry, storytelling, spoken word, author interviews, topical talks, films and music.