Like a little air of déjà vu. Among the 16 titles preselected by the Goncourt academy this year and unveiled this Tuesday, 15 novels and ... a story, "In the spring of the monsters" by Philippe Jaenada, incredible counter-investigation into the Lucien Léger affair. In 2020, the race for the most prestigious literary prizes was marked by another non-fictional book: “Yoga” by Emmanuel Carrère. Among the favorites, he was eliminated to everyone's surprise in the second round ... following a controversy with his ex-wife, who had criticized him in particular for having betrayed his commitments in writing not to mention certain aspects of their private life.
Chaired for two years by Didier Decoin, who has taken on the heavy task of succeeding the very media-friendly Bernard Pivot, the Goncourt jury met, as tradition dictates, at the Drouant restaurant to draw up an initial list of their sixteen authors. favorite.
Who will succeed Hervé Le Tellier whose phenomenal “L'Anomalie”, released just a year ago, is still the second best-selling novel in France with more than a million copies sold?
Read also Soon a million books sold: "The Anomaly", decryption of an extraordinary literary phenomenon
Not Amélie Nothomb anyway.
His magnificent “First blood”, number 1 in sales since its release, is not among the 16 lucky winners.
"Let's be clear, I won't have the Goncourt," she confided to us this summer.
If I did not have it for
Thirst
(
Editor's note: finalist and big favorite in 2019
), I will never have it.
That would have made me very happy, of course, but it doesn't matter.
They consider me to be a successful author and that I don't need one, and that can defend itself.
"
François Noul's first novel
Among the selected writers, (re) known authors such as Christine Angot ("Le voyage dans l'Est", Flammarion), Sorj Chalandon ("Bastard's child", Grasset), David Diop ("The door of the journey of no return" , Seuil), Agnès Desarthe (“The eternal fiancé”, L'Olivier) or Clara Dupont-Monod (“To adapt”, Stock).
But also many others less identified with the general public.
Starting with Maria Pourchet (“Feu”, Fayard) and Tanguy Viel (“The girl we call”, Éditions de Minuit), who are already among the favorites.
For this first selection, only François Noul, author of “Children of Cadillac” at
Gallimard, signs his first novel.
Parity is almost respected with seven women and nine men.
Viewers of "Quotidien" will also recognize the name of Lilia Hassaine, columnist for the program hosted by Yann Barthès on TMC, selected for her novel "Bitter Sun".
Read alsoNothomb, Fottorino, Diop, Angot, Bouraoui ... what the headliners of the literary season are worth
On the publishing house side, Grasset with three nominations (Anne Berest, Sorj Chalandon and Patrice Franceschi) comes first ahead of Gallimard (Lilia Hassaine, François Noudelmann).
The jury also gives pride of place to small houses: Mialet-Barrault, Sabine Wespieser, Philippe Rey and L'Observatoire place one of their authors such as Fayard, Flammarion, Le Seuil, l'Olivier or even Stock.
The next two selections for the 2020 Goncourt Prize are scheduled for October 5 and 26 and the name of the winner will be announced on November 3.
The first selection for the 2021 Goncourt Prize
Christine Angot, "Le Voyage dans l'Est" (Flammarion)
Anne Berest, "The postcard" (Grasset)
Sorj Chalandon, “Bastard's Child” (Grasset)
Louis-Philippe Dalembert, “Milwaukee Blues” (Sabine Wespieser)
Agnès Desarthe, "The eternal fiancé" (L'Olivier)
David Diop, "The door of the journey of no return" (Seuil)
Clara Dupont-Monod, “To adapt” (Stock)
Elsa Fottorino, "Speak all low" (Mercure de France)
Patrice Franceschi, "If only one remains" (Grasset)
Lilia Hassaine, "Bitter Sun" (Gallimard)
Philippe Jaenada, "In the spring of the monsters" (Mialet-Barrault)
François Noudelmann, "The children of Cadillac" (Gallimard)
Maria Pourchet, "Feu" (Fayard)
Abel Quentin, "The seer of Etampes" (The Observatory)
Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, “The most secret memory of men” (Philippe Rey)
Tanguy Viel, "The girl we call" (Éditions de Minuit)
