is an Egyptian-Canadian author and academic. She was born in Cairo in 1965 and studied French literature at Ain Shams University. She worked for several years in the French Service of Radio Cairo and in the arts faculty at Menoufia University. She also lived for a time in Paris. In 1995, she obtained a Masters in French literature from Cairo University. She moved to Canada in 1998 for her doctoral studies, eventually completing her PhD in 2001 from the University of Montreal under a CIDA scholarship. She has since taught at the universities of Montréal, Concordia and McGill. Her first novel Dunyazad (1997) was critically acclaimed and translated into French, English, Spanish and German. Dunyazad won the 2002 Ulysses Prize for best first novel in France and the 2002 State Prize for best autobiographical novel in Egypt. Her second novel Heliopolis came out in 2001. Telmissany has also written on a wide range of scholarly interests, e.g. essays, articles and book chapters on cinema, photography, literature and Cairo culture. Along with Robert Solé and Mercédès Volait, she has co-edited a book of memoirs on the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis. Her doctoral dissertation on the concept of neighbourhoods in Egyptian cinema has been translated into Arabic and published in Cairo. She has also done extensive translations from French and English to Arabic.

(Marken, 1958-2009) was a poet, a writer and a commentator, with a regular column on the Forum page and the book pages of the Volkskrant. Zeeman was the editor of the arts section of the Volkskrant and from 2006-2007 its Rome correspondent. In 2006 he and the writer Abdelkader Benali published an exchange of letters, exchanging ideas on politics, life, love and literature. In 2002 Zeeman received the Gouden Ganzenveer (Golden Goose Quill) for his merits for Dutch literature. Zeeman became well-known in the 1990s as the host of his monthly book programme 'Late at night after a short walk', later to be renamed 'Zeeman with books'. In 1991 he published his first volume of poetry, Beeldenstorm (Iconoclasm), winning him the C. Buddingh Prize. His second volume Verhoudingen (Relationships) appeared in 1995. In the same year he published short stories entitled De Verduistering (The Darkening). He died in 2009.

(Amsterdam, 1971) travelled to Egypt at age 24 to do research among Egyptian contemporaries. That not only earned him a degree in religious anthropology, but also his debut, Een goede man slaat soms zijn vrouw (A Good Man Sometimes Hits his Wife). It was an instant success and Volkskrant and Radio 1 Journaal asked him to become a correspondent in the Arab World. Later he also worked for NRC Handelsblad and NOS. During his stay he wrote Een tipje van de sluier (A Corner of the Veil) and after his return to the Netherlands in 2003 Het zijn net mensen (People Like Us), on his experiences as a correspondent. Meanwhile Luyendijk has shifted his attention elsewhere: Dutch politics and sustainability. His latest book, Je hebt het niet van mij, maar…Een maand aan het Binnenhof (Don’t mention my name, but… A Month in Parliament), caused a great deal of controversy in Dutch journalist circles. Joris Luyendijk took a closer look at the bell-jar world of Dutch politics. With some amazement he describes how close the link between journalists, lobbyists, public relations officials and politicians is. In 2006 and 2007 Luyendijk hosted the tv interview programme Zomergasten (Summer Guests) and in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 Wintergasten (Winter Guests). Since March 2010 he is one of the regular hosts of the late night radio current affairs programme Met het oog op morgen (With a View to Tomorrow).