Biography books from France
Recommended biography books (10)
Travel the world without leaving your chair.
If you are into biography here are some biography books from France for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge.
1.
A Woman's Story by Annie Ernaux EN
Description:
WINNER OF THE 2022 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE A New York Times Notable Book "A deeply affecting account of mothers and daughters, youth and age, and dreams and reality" (Kirkus Reviews) Upon her mother’s death from Alzheimer’s, Ernaux embarks on a daunting journey back through time, as she seeks to "capture the real woman, the one who existed independently from me, born on the outskirts of a small Normandy town, and who died in the geriatric ward of a hospital in the suburbs of Paris." She explores the bond between mother and daughter, tenuous and unshakable at once, the alienating worlds that ... continue
2.
Io sono vivo, voi siete morti by Emmanuel Carrère IT
Description:
«Da adolescente» scrive Emmanuel Carrère nel "Regno" «sono stato un lettore appassionato di Dick e, a differenza della maggior parte delle passioni adolescenziali, questa non si è mai affievolita. Ho riletto a intervalli regolari "Ubik", "Le tre stimmate di Palmer Eldritch", "Un oscuro scrutare", "Noi marziani", "La svastica sul sole". Consideravo – e considero tuttora – il loro autore una specie di Dostoevskij della nostra epoca». A trentacinque anni, spinto da questa inesausta passione, Carrère decise di raccontare la vita, vissuta e sognata, di Philip K. Dick. Il risultato fu questo libro, ... continue
3.
L'allure de Chanel by Paul Morand FR
Description:
Paul Morand faisait partie des proches de Chanel. Son dernier livre, écrit à partir des conversations qu'il eut avec la modiste, restitue, dans la langue étincelante de ce grand conteur, l'insaisissable Coco Chanel. Nous suivons, racontées à la première personne, son enfance chez des tantes qui lui donneront le goût de l'épure et le sens de l'argent, ses rencontres avec les providentiels M. B. et Boy Capel ; puis la création de sa maison, ses luttes contre les excentricités vestimentaires des dames du monde, ses succès, ses amitiés... Revivent, sous la plume exquise et vive de Paul Morand, Rad... continue
4.
Description:
J'ai toujours eu envie d'écrire des livres dont il me soit ensuite impossible de parler, qui rendent le regard d'autrui insoutenable. Mais quelle honte pourrait m'apporter l'écriture d'un livre qui soit à la hauteur de ce que j'ai éprouvé dans ma douzième année.
5.
Description:
"Enfant, quand je m'efforçais de m'exprimer dans un langage châtié, j'avais l'impression de me jeter dans le vide. Une de mes frayeurs imaginaires, avoir un père instituteur qui m'aurait obligée à bien parler sans arrêt en détachant les mots. On parlait avec toute la bouche. Puisque la maîtresse me reprenait, plus tard j'ai voulu reprendre mon père, lui annoncer que se parterrer ou quart moins d'onze heures n'existaient pas. Il est entré dans une violente colère. Une autre fois : Comment voulez-vous que je ne me fasse pas reprendre, si vous parlez mal tout le temps ! Je pleurais. Il était malh... continue
6.
Les armoires vides by Annie Ernaux FR
Description:
Etudiante en lettres, l'auteure se remémore la période où affligée par sa famille de tous les vices, elle en vient à la détester et se trouve confrontée à l'expérience difficile de l'avortement.
8.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly : A Memoir of Life in Death by Jean-Dominique Bauby EN
Description:
A triumphant memoir by the former editor-in-chief of French Elle that reveals an indomitable spirit and celebrates the liberating power of consciousness. In 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby was the editor-in-chief of French Elle, the father of two young children, a 44-year-old man known and loved for his wit, his style, and his impassioned approach to life. By the end of the year he was also the victim of a rare kind of stroke to the brainstem. After 20 days in a coma, Bauby awoke into a body which had all but stopped working: only his left eye functioned, allowing him to see and, by blinking it, to... continue
9.
Description:
WINNER OF THE 2022 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE Shortlisted for the 2019 Man Booker International Prize Considered by many to be the iconic French memoirist's defining work and a breakout bestseller when published in France in 2008 The Years is a personal narrative of the period 1941 to 2006 told through the lens of memory, impressions past and present—even projections into the future—photos, books, songs, radio, television and decades of advertising, headlines, contrasted with intimate conflicts and writing notes from 6 decades of diaries. Local dialect, words of the times, slogans, brands and n... continue
10.
Who Killed My Father by Édouard Louis EN
Description:
Who Killed My Father is the story of a tough guy - the story of the little boy I never was. The story of my father. 'What a beautiful book' MAX PORTER In Who Killed My Father, douard Louis explores key moments in his father's life, and the tenderness and disconnects in their relationship. Told with the fire of a writer determined on social justice, and with the compassion of a loving son, the book urgently and brilliantly engages with issues surrounding masculinity, class, homophobia, shame and social poverty. It unflinchingly takes aim at systems that disadvantage those they seek to exclude -... continue