About
Alain Mabanckou is a Franco-Congolese writer and academic born on February 24, 1966, in Mouyondji (or Pointe-Noire), Republic of the Congo. After studying law in Brazzaville and earning a postgraduate diploma from Université Paris-Dauphine, he worked as a corporate lawyer before turning to writing full-time. His first novel, Bleu-Blanc-Rouge (1998), won the Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire. In 2006, he received the Prix Renaudot for Mémoires de porc-épic. He also won the Grand prix de littérature Henri-Gal (2012) and the Prix Prince-Pierre-de-Monaco (2013). A professor at UCLA since 2006, he was the first writer to hold the annual Chair of Artistic Creation at the Collège de France (2015-2016).
* 1966-02-24
Major works
- Bleu-Blanc-Rouge (1998)novel
- Verre cassé (2005)novel
- Mémoires de porc-épic (2006)novel
- Black Bazar (2009)novel
- Demain j'aurai vingt ans (2010)novel
Key milestones
- 2006Awarded the Prix Renaudot for Mémoires de porc-épic.
- 2010Appointed Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur.
- 2015First writer invited to hold the annual Chair of Artistic Creation at the Collège de France.
Themes
IdentityExileMemoryAfricaLanguage
Sources: college-de-france.fr · thebookerprizes.com