Tahar ben Jelloun

Tahar ben Jelloun is a Moroccan writer who lives in Paris. He became famous with the release of his novel L’Enfant de Sable (The Sand Child) in 1985. In 1987, he was awarded the Prix Goncourt for his novel La Nuit Sacrée (The Sacred Night).

His 1996 novel Les raisins de la galère (The Fruits of Hard Work) reflects his ideas of racism and the traditional ideals of women in Muslim and Islamic subcultures. In 2004, Ben Jelloun was awarded the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award for Cette aveuglante absence de lumière (This Blinding Absence of Light). He received the Prix Ulysse in 2005 for the entirety of his work.

In 2006, Ben Jelloun was awarded a special prize for "peace and friendship between people" at the Lazio between Europe and the Mediterranean Festival. In 2008, Nicolas Sarkozy awarded him the Cross of Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur.