Exercises in bravery: Biography of René/Renate Stoute

In his desire to escape the petty-bourgeois existence of his parents, René Stoute (1950-2000) started using opium and later heroin. He paid for this with money he earned by breaking and entering and forging checks. In prison he discovered himself as a writer. In 1982 he published Op de rug vanvuile zwanen, the iconic collection of stories about the junkie existence that won the Gouden Ezelsoor as his best-selling debut. Stoute did not only struggle with a drug addiction. From his earliest youth he felt that deep down he was a she. It was only after his 40th birthday that he dared to undergo a sex change operation that he hoped would make him happy.