Ahmad Al Malik

(Sudan, 1967) wants to hearten his fellow citizens in Sudan with his literary work. His fourth novel, Met Safa komt de herfst (With Safa comes autumn) was published in Dutch in 2010. In it he tries to disentangle the political events of the last 30 years. In his novels, which are often reminiscent of the great Latin American magical realists, Al Malik incorporates folklore and myths. He sees it his task to explain to his readers that tolerance and the ability to live together with other cultures are the real core of Islam. By the end of the 1990s he fled to the Netherlands. Before that he studied in Khartoum, where he published in various newspapers. After his studies he worked as a teacher. After the 1989 coup it became increasingly difficult for Al Malik to work in freedom. His first novella was seized owing to its critical stance vis-a-vis the regime. His three other novels were published in Egypt, Syria and Lebanon respectively. Currently Al Malik lives in Amsterdam.

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