Balsam Karam

alsam Karam (born 1983) is a Swedish writer and librarian of Kurdish descent. She studied at Biskop Arnös författarskola before doing a master’s degree at the University of Gothenburg. Händelsehorisonten (Event Horizon, 2018) is her first novel and was shortlisted for Sweden’s Katapult Prize for the best literary debut. In 2021, it was awarded the Smålits migrantpris. Her second novel, Singulariteten (The Singularity), was shortlisted for the 2021 European Union Prize for Literature. She works at Rinkeby Public Library in Stockholm. Since July 2021, she has been a member of the jury for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.