Song of Exile

Jeanne Benguigui was born and raised in Sidi-Bel-Abbès, Algeria. A teacher by profession, she published her first book of poetry, L’Arbre de vie, in 1958 while living in Belgium, where she was recovering from tuberculosis. Benguigui spent much of her life in Vaires sur Marne, France, publishing more than twenty volumes of poetry. She received numerous prizes for her literary work, including for her collection of stories and legends about her birthplace, Contes de Sidi-Bel-Abbès, published in 1992.