A day of emotions with the Nobel Prize for Literature Annie Ernaux

Annie Ernaux, the new and brand new Nobel Prize for Literature, has lived for three decades in a house in Cergy, far from Paris, surrounded by books and trees and privileged views of the river.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
06 October 2022 Thursday 06:47
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A day of emotions with the Nobel Prize for Literature Annie Ernaux

Annie Ernaux, the new and brand new Nobel Prize for Literature, has lived for three decades in a house in Cergy, far from Paris, surrounded by books and trees and privileged views of the river. "The times I have had to say that it is the Oise river and not the Seine", he explained that day he spent in the company of La Vanguardia, between books, coffees, memories and projects... and the antics of his two beloved cats: Sam and Zoe. It was a July 3, 2021.

Cat hair on the sofa. On the table, the petals of the flowers that were falling. The author of Lost and The event dreamed of bursting the bubble to which the Covid had subjected her and as soon as she received the second vaccine, she gave Marta Sebastián, from her publisher in Spain, Cabaret Voltaire, the go-ahead for the interview.

Arnaux undressed in the interview, spoke of life, of the fractures and tears (fractures et déchirures) that it leaves us, of the separations, of the changes in life. She was very kind, she opened the doors of her studio where there were photos of her children, her grandchildren and hers. Those photos that have been published and illustrated in her books in Spain.

It was a morning and an afternoon of laughter, polaroids and a selfie taken with the person signing, a beautiful memory, out of focus. A memory forever. That day in Cergy's old house there were moments of sincerity and dramatic humor... the author received La Vanguardia walking robotically.

He had broken a bone in his foot and was walking with difficulty. A woman all fragility and all strength. the same one that he has written about her and only about her, and about those who surrounded her, with a singular crudeness of hers. In the photo session everything was laughter, because she moved from sofa to sofa as she could.

Ernaux is a lady, diplomatic and mischievous. In the long emails she shared with this newspaper, she sometimes couldn't help but mild criticism: "Her French is on the decline," she wrote, but also undeserved praise. "Your letter from her is like the sun." In her face-to-face appointment, the author explained stories that she had never talked about, how she had changed her diet and that of her ex-husband, now deceased.

The house was lined with books, many galligrasseuil, which traditionally received the Goncourt (Gallimard, his publisher, Grasset and Seuil). all white On the balcony sat the branches of the trees. Annie Ernaux's house was and is called La Favola, that's right, in Italian. Why? "Once in Italy I saw an inscription on a step," she explained. "The inscription said: 'Voglio vivere una favola' and that's how I wanted to name my house."

In the middle of the interview a name appeared on her phone screen... Audrey Diwan. "Take it, please." She was the director of the event. She was calling to tell him that Cannes had not selected the film based on her experience, when Ernaux had an abortion as a college student. The same film that months later would receive the Golden Lion in Venice. That coffee was good, it was bitter, and deep and it left an indelible aftertaste in the mouth. Like life. Like that day in that house in the middle of nowhere. Or almost.