The novels of Algerian writer Assia Djebar, who was awarded the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade in 2000, address highly relevant themes: Islam, its shaping power on society, and particularly the social role of women. Claudia Nieser describes how Assia Djebar portrays the influence of Islamic culture on women's life paths in her novels, questions the restriction of freedoms in the name of religion, and highlights ways to overcome these limitations. This creates a multifaceted image of Islam, quite different from the common stereotypical representations. Claudia Nieser relates Assia Djebar's work to the biblical figure of Hagar, who provides a template for resisting fundamentalist efforts that seek to exclude or even combat the "Other" and the "Foreign.".