Arnon Grunberg (born 1971 in Amsterdam, Netherlands) At the age of twenty-three, he made his debut with the novel Blue Mondays . the mocking and humorous coming-of-age novel became an instant hit. They followed are Figuranten / Statisti and Fantoompijn / Fantomska pain , novels that have definitely convinced both readers and critics that it is about to a brave new voice and a great writer. Grunberg also writes plays, essays and travelogues columns. He is the winner of several literary awards, including AKO for his novels Fantoompijn / Fantomska pain and De asielzoeker / Asylum seeker , and Libris and Flemish The Golden Owl (equivalent of the British Man Booker) for the novel Tirza . Among His other works include the novels De joodse messias / The Jewish Messiah The Messiah and the Youth . He published under the pseudonym Marek van der Jagt successful novels De geschiedenis van mijn kaalheid / History my baldness and Gstaad 95-98 , and the essay Monogaam / Monogaman .