Dutch-Somali poet and author Alara Adilow’s debut poetry collection Mythen en Stoplichten (Myths and Traffic Lights) was published to critical acclaim last year, and recently won top Dutch poetry award the C. Buddingh Prize in the best debut category.

A raw and visceral work tackling themes of gender, queerness, and the desire to escape the body, Adilow celebrates the beauty of language while also using it to draw the reader into dark, fantastic, and grotesque worlds.

Her poetry spans topics including religion, spirituality, exorcism, fornication, and politics, in a mind-spinning exploration of the sensuality of the world.