Rachid O. (born 1970 in Rabat) is a Moroccan writer.

Biography

Rachid was born in

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...

, and after studying in

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

he moved to France, where he began writing about the balance between the

Muslim world The terms Islamic world and Muslim world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is ...

and

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

. Since 2000, he has been a resident at the

Villa Medici The Villa Medici () is a sixteenth-century Italian Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with 7-hectare Italian garden, contiguous with the more extensive Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in the historic ...

(French Academy in Rome), which is directed by the

Fondation de France The Fondation de France ("Foundation of France") is an independent private organisation, recognised as being in the public interest, and created at the instigation of Charles de Gaulle and André Malraux in an effort to stimulate and foster the g ...

Works

Rachid O. considers himself closer to

Hervé Guibert Hervé Guibert (14 December 1955 – 27 December 1991) was a French writer and photographer. The author of numerous novels and autobiographical studies, he played a considerable role in changing French public attitudes to HIV/AIDS. He was a ...

than to his contemporary Moroccan writers. His works have significantly influenced the perception of homosexuality in Maghrebi literature. His first novel, ''L'enfant ébloui'' ("''The Dazzled Child''"), tells the story of a young Moroccan boy who is attracted to boys and men and "takes pleasure in that commerce". His book ''Chocolat chaud'' (''Hot Chocolate'') is a

coming-of-age story In genre studies, a coming-of-age story is a genre of literature, theatre, film, and video game that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from childhood to adulthood, or "coming of age". Coming-of-age stories tend to emphasize dialogue or interna ...

about a young Moroccan navigating between two cultures, with his head full of dreams and images of France. It is his third novel, described as "full of joy for life, of doubts, of simplicity, and a language that evokes the purest sense of the word 'innocent'."

Bibliography

* 1995: ''L'enfant ébloui'', Gallimard * 1996: ''Plusieurs vies'', Gallimard * 1998: ''Chocolat chaud'', Gallimard * 2003: ''Ce qui reste'', Gallimard * 2013: ''Analphabètes'', Gallimard

References

French gay writers French Muslims Gay Muslims Moroccan gay men French male writers Moroccan writers 1970 births Living people Writers from Rabat 20th-century Moroccan LGBTQ people 21st-century Moroccan LGBTQ people Moroccan LGBTQ writers Moroccan emigrants to France {{Morocco-writer-stub

Biography

Works

Bibliography

See also

References