Astrid Roemer was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, in 1947. She emigrated to the Netherlands in 1966, where she made her debut as a poet in 1970. Read More She now has a considerable oeuvre to her name, including a volume of poetry, Noordzeeblues (North Sea Blues, 1985); a play, Dichter bij mij schreeuw ik (Closer to Me I Shout, 1991); a novella, Levenslang gedicht (Lifelong Poem, 1987); and several novels. Her two latest novels, Gewaagd leven (Daring Life, 1995) and Lijken op liefde (Looks Like Love, 1997), were greeted with universal enthusiasm by the Dutch press. In 2023, she was a finalist for the National Book Award for Translated Literature with On a Woman’s Madness.