(Paris) The Grand Prix du roman de l’Académie française was awarded Thursday to François-Henri Désrable, with My master and my conqueror (Gallimard editions).
The young 34-year-old novelist signs there a subtle story, stuffed with literate references, of a love that ends badly.
A native of Amiens, a high school student like President Emmanuel Macron at the private establishment La Providence, he was first a professional hockey player, while devoting himself to writing.
“I started writing when I was 18 after reading Belle of the Lord. And Albert Cohen got the Grand Prix for the novel in 1968. So I’m happy, ”said the winner after the award was announced.
The French Academy had already awarded him the Amic Prize in 2013 for You will show my face to the people, portraits of characters from the French Revolution in their last moments before being guillotined.
The decision was made in the third round, with ten votes against nine for Gilles Martin-Chauffier and The last tribune (Grasset), fictitious memoirs of an Athenian in the Rome of Julius Caesar.
The other finalist was Senegalese Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, with The most secret memory of men (Philippe Rey), a novel still in the running for the Goncourt Prize on November 3.
These two finalists were present at the French Academy even if they knew the result of the ballot.
“The Academy is very sensitive to this brotherly gesture,” said perpetual secretary Hélène Carrère d’Encausse.
François-Henri Désrable, for his part, considered that they “deserved this award as much as [lui] “.