Amélie Nothomb
| Amélie Nothomb | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
Fabienne-Claire Nothomb.[1] 9 July 1966 Etterbeek, Belgium |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | Belgian |
| Notable works | Stupeur et tremblements |
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| Signature |
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Baroness Amélie Nothomb (born Fabienne-Claire; 9 July 1966 in Etterbeek, Belgium)[1] is a Belgian Francophone writer.
Biography
Amélie Nothomb, was born in Etterbeek, Belgium on 9 July 1967, to Belgian diplomat Patrick Nothomb,[2] She lived in Japan from the age of two until she was five years old. Subsequently, she lived in China, New York, Bangladesh, Burma, the United Kingdom (Coventry) and Laos.[2] She is from an old noble Belgian political family and is the grandniece of Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb, a Belgian foreign minister (1980–1981), and great granddaughter of writer and politician Pierre Nothomb. She has one brother and one sister, Juliette Nothomb.
While in Japan, Nothomb attended a local school and learned Japanese. When she was five, the family moved to China. "Quitter le Japon fut pour moi un arrachement" ("Leaving Japan was a wrenching separation for me"), she wrote in Fear and Trembling. She studied philology at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. After some family tensions and having finished her studies, Nothomb returned to Japan to work in a Japanese company in Tokyo. Her experience of this time, is expressed in Fear and Trembling.[3]
Nothomb's first novel, Hygiène de l'assassin, was published in 1992. Since then, she has published approximately one novel per year, including Les Catilinaires (1995), Fear and Trembling (1999) and Métaphysique des tubes (2000, published in English as The Character of Rain). She has been awarded numerous prizes, including the 1999 Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française, the Grand prix Jean Giono (2008), and since 2015 is a member of the Belgium Royal Academy of French language and literature.[4]
She wrote a romanticized biography (The Book of Proper Names) of French female singer Robert in 2002 and during the period 2000–2002 wrote the lyrics for nine tracks of the same artist.
A documentary directed by Laureline Amanieux about Amélie's return to Japan and rediscovery of the beauty of the landscapes, the peaceful rites, the sadness of Fukushima, but especially, the meeting with her Japanese nursemaid, Nishio San was made in 2012[5].
By a Royal Decree of 8 July 2015, Nothomb was ennobled as a non-hereditary baroness.
Works
| Published (in French) |
Type | Original title | English title | English publication details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | novel | Hygiène de l'assassin | Hygiene and the Assassin | Europa Editions, hardback, 2010 ISBN 978-1-933372-77-8 |
| 1993 | novel | Le Sabotage amoureux | Loving Sabotage | W. W. Norton & Co, hardback, 2000, ISBN 0-8112-1459-1 Faber and Faber, paperback, 2003, ISBN 0-571-22663-9 |
| 1993 | tale | Légende un peu chinoise (Longue Vue) |
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| 1994 | play | Les Combustibles | Human Rites | Oberon Books, paperback, 2005, ISBN 1-84002-539-5 |
| 1995 | novel | Les Catilinaires | The Stranger Next Door | Holt (Henry) & Co, hardback, 1996, ISBN 0-8050-4841-3 |
| 1996 | novel | Péplum | ||
| 1996 | 14 pages short story | Électre (Stock) |
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| 1996 | short story | L'Existence de Dieu (La Revue Générale) |
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| 1997 | novel | Attentat | ||
| 1998 | novel | Mercure | ||
| 1999 | novel | Stupeur et tremblements | Fear and Trembling | Faber and Faber, paperback, 2002, ISBN 0-571-22048-7 |
| 1999 | 39 pages short story | Le Mystère par excellence (Le Grand livre du mois) |
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| 2000 | novel | Métaphysique des tubes | The Character of Rain | Faber and Faber, paperback, 2003, ISBN 0-571-22049-5 |
| 2000 | 3 tales | Brillant comme une casserole (La Pierre d'Alun) |
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| 2001 | novel | Cosmétique de l'ennemi | The Enemy's Cosmetique | |
| 2001 | 2 pages short story | Aspirin | ||
| 2001 | 64 pages short story | Sans nom (Elle) |
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| 2002 | novel | Robert des noms propres | The Book of Proper Names | Faber and Faber, paperback, 2004, ISBN 0-571-22344-3 |
| 2003 | novel | Antéchrista | Antichrista | Faber and Faber, paperback, 2004, ISBN 0-571-22483-0 |
| 2004 | 46 pages short story | L'Entrée du Christ à Bruxelles (Elle) |
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| 2004 | novel | Biographie de la faim | The Life of Hunger | Faber and Faber, hardback, 2006 |
| 2005 | novel | Acide sulfurique | Sulphuric Acid | Faber and Faber, hardback, 2007 |
| 2006 | novel | Journal d'Hirondelle | ||
| 2007 | novel | Ni d'Eve, ni d'Adam | Tokyo Fiancée | Europa Editions, hardback, 2008 |
| 2007 | short story in 9 episodes | Les Champignons de Paris (Charlie Hebdo) | ||
| 2008 | novel | Le Fait du prince | The Prince's Act | Éditions Albin Michel |
| 2009 | novel | Le Voyage d'Hiver | The Winter Journey | Éditions Albin Michel |
| 2010 | novel | Une forme de vie | Life Form | Europa Editions, hardback, forthcoming |
| 2011 | novel | Tuer le père | Éditions Albin Michel | |
| 2012 | novel | Barbe bleue | Éditions Albin Michel | |
| 2013 | novel | La nostalgie heureuse | Éditions Albin Michel | |
| 2014 | novel | Petronille | Éditions Albin Michel |
Unless otherwise stated, all works were originally published in French by Éditions Albin Michel.
Audio books
Eight of Amélie Nothomb's novels were adapted in the form of audio books, four first ones were published by the editions "VDB", the others by "Audiolib" :
- Robert des noms propres (=The Book of Proper Names): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Véronique Groux de Miéri (narrator), La Roque-sur-Pernes, "Éditions VDB", 1 March 2003 (ISBN 978-2-84694-068-9) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF39186856q).
Support: 3 audio CD (lasted: 3:15 am min, complete text), ref. V.D.B. 008.
- Antéchrista (=Antichrista): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Véronique Groux de Miéri (narrator), La Roque-sur-Pernes, "Éditions VDB", 1 March 2004 (ISBN 978-2-84694-281-2) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF412025642).
Support: 3 audio CD (lasted: 2:52 am min, complete text), ref. V.D.B. 033. Musical illustration: Thierry Duhamel.
- Biographie de la faim (=The life of hunger): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Véronique Groux de Miéri (narrator), La Roque-sur-Pernes, "Éditions VDB", 1 March 2005 (ISBN 978-2-84694-281-2) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF40227909h).
Support: 4 audio CD (lasted: 4:17 am min, complete text), ref. V.D.B. 074. Musical illustration: Thierry Duhamel.
- Acide sulfurique (=Sulphuric acid): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Véronique Groux de Miéri (narrator), La Roque-sur-Pernes, "Éditions VDB", 1 March 2006 (ISBN 978-2-84694-403-8) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF40227903f).
Support: 3 audio CD (lasted: 5:39 am min, complete text), ref. V.D.B. 104. Musical illustration: Thierry Duhamel.
- Ni d'Eve, ni d'Adam (=Tokyo Fiancée): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Sylvie Testud (narrator), Paris, "Audiolib", 13 February 2008 (ISBN 978-2-35641-012-2) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF412025642).
Support: 1 audio CD (lasted: 3:50 am min, complete text), ref. Audiolib 25 0012 02.
- Le fait du prince (=The prince's act): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Patrick Waleffe (narrator), Paris, "Audiolib", 21 January 2009 (ISBN 978-2-356-41048-1) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF414068348).
Support: 1 audio CD (lasted: 3:00 am min, complete text), ref. Audiolib 25 0049 4.
- Le voyage d'hiver (=The winter journey): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Thibault de Montalembert (narrator), Paris, "Audiolib", 9 September 2009 (ISBN 978-2-35641-093-1) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF42044512x).
Support: 2 audio CD (lasted: 1:54 am min, complete text), ref. Audiolib 25 0129 4.
- Une forme de vie (=A form of life): Amélie Nothomb (author) and Frédéric Meaux (narrator), Paris, "Audiolib", 13 October 2010 (ISBN 978-2-356-41245-4) (Note BNF (FRENCH NATIONAL LIBRARY) no FRBNF42285807k).
Support: 1 audio CD (lasted: 2:42 am min, complete text), ref. Audiolib 25 281 3.
Film adaptations
- 1999 : Hygiène de l'assassin (Hygiene and the Assassin), French movie directed by François Ruggieri, with Jean Yanne (Prétextat Tach) and Barbara Schulz (Nina).
- 2003 : Stupeur et tremblements (Fear and Trembling), French movie directed by Alain Corneau with Sylvie Testud (Amélie) and Kaori Tsuji (Fubuki).
- 2014 : "Tokyo Fiancée (film)", Belgian movie directed by Stefan Liberski with Pauline Etienne (Amélie) and Taichi Inoue (Rinri)
Stage adaptations
- Le sabotage amoureux (English: Loving sabotage), Theater Le Ranelagh, Paris, 1999
With Valérie Mairesse, Pétronille de Saint-Rapt, Vanessa Jarry Direction: Annabelle Milot
- Le sabotage amoureux (Loving Sabotage), Theater Daniel-Sorano, Vincennes, 2003–2005
With Pauline Foschia, Jeanne Gougeau, Laurence Vielle Adaptation et direction: Brigitte Bailleux, Laurence Vielle
- Cosmétique de l'ennemi (The Enemy's Cosmetique), "La Compagnie des Sept Lieux", Suisse, 2003–2008
With John Durand and Olivier Renault Adaptation and direction: Emmanuel Samatani and Jean-Daniel Uldry
- Les combustibles (Human Rites), Theater Daniel-Sorano, Vincennes, March – April 2008
With Michel Boy, Julie Turin, Grégory Gerrebo Direction: Stéphane Cottin
- Métaphysique des tubes (The Character of Rain), 2007–2009
With Cécile Schletzer and Claire Rieussec Direction: Claire Rieussec
- Hygiène de l'assassin (Hygiene and the Assassin), Theater of Namur and Theater "le Public", Bruxelles, September – October 2008
With Daniel Hanssens, Nathalie Cornet, Valérie Marchand and Vincent Lécuyer Direction: Pierre Santini
- Biographie de la Faim (The Life of Hunger), Theater of "La Place des Martyrs", Bruxelles, April – May 2009
With Nathalie Cornet, Michel Hinderyckx, Jessica Gazon, Stéphanie Blanchoud… Adaptation and direction: Christine Delmotte
- Les Combustibles (Human Rites), Theater of Nesle, Paris, 16 September 2010 – 2 October 2010
With Philippe Doré, Freddy Zimmer, Florine Moreau Direction: Hubert Vinzani
- Stupeur et Tremblements (Fear and Trembling), Theater "Le Petit Hébértot", Paris, 18 March 2011 – 22 May 2011
With Layla Metssitane Adaptation and direction: Layla Metssitane
Texts of songs
- For Juliette Gréco: "Le pont Juliette" (= "the Juliet Bridge"); text read by Guillaume Gallienne (2011)
- For the singer Robert: "L'appel de la succube" (="The call of succubus") (2000), "A la guerre comme à la guerre" (="You have to make the best of things"), "Le chant des sirènes" (="The siren song"), "Celle qui tue" (="the One who kills"), "Nitroglycérine", "Requiem pour une soeur perdue" (= "Requiem for a lost sister"),"Sorcière" (= "Witch") (2002)
References
- 1 2 État présent de la noblesse belge, éditions of 1979, 1995 and 2010. Her birth is announced in n° 87, aout 1967, p. 340 of the Bulletin de l'association de la noblesse du royaume de Belgique, publication trimestrielle : Annonces de naissance : "Baron et Baronne Patrick Nothomb : Fabienne, 9 juillet 1966".
- 1 2 Intitute of Modern Languages
- ↑ Jasper Rees (23 July 2006). "A writer's life: Amélie Nothomb". Telegraph.co.uk.
- ↑ (fr)arllfb - members
- ↑ Savoir Changer. "Chroniques et actualités".
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Amélie Nothomb. |
- (French) Official site at Éditions Albin Michel
- (French) Amélie Nothomb – best quotes
- (French) Criticisms of Human Rites on Lire.fr
- (French) Le voyage nothombien (The "nothombien" journey): A very complete French forum on Amélie Nothomb, her books, her current events, her photos and videos, with a new part on her sister Juliette.
- (French) Amélie Nothomb, Une plume, Un univers... (=Amélie Nothomb, A style of writing, A world...): a French forum, very complete, and well-documented about the author, her work, her inspiring influences, current events, etc.
- (Italian) amelienothomb.com, an Italian website & forum at Voland edizioni