Jonathan Littell

Jonathan Littell , born the October 10th 1967 with New York, is free a writer - American. Its Romance Benevolent the , writes entirely in French and signed at the 39 years age, the Prix Goncourt 2006 is worth and the to him Grand Prix of the novel of the French Academy 2006.

It is as thanks to this novel as it obtains the March 8th 2007 French nationality for “contribution to the radiation of France” after two unfruitful attempts in 2006.

Biography

Born from a family of emigrated Jewish origin of Poland with the the United States at the end of the 19th century, he is the son of the writer Robert Littell. Today domiciled to Barcelona with his Belgian wife and her two daughters, it passed her childhood in France, country which it will leave only at the time to enter to the Université Yale after having passed its vat with the college Fénelon in 1985. Even if its family did not live in a direct way the fate reserved to the Jews in Europe, Jonathan Littell grew with this history, which will be the central theme of its first work. Marked during its childhood by the War of Vietnam, it will leave, after three last years with Yale, in the Balkans then in conflict. It is invested in the humanitarian action, within the ONG Action against the hunger in which it will work seven years, in particular in Bosnia-Herzégovine, but also in various places of the world such as the Chetchnia, the Afghanistan, the Congo or Moscow. In 2001, it decides to stop its humane activities and starts to be invested with the writing of its first novel, Benevolent the , vast fresco relating to the Second world war and the face of the East, through the imaginary memories of an officer S cultivated name of Maximilien Aue. This book will receive the price Goncourt 2006, will be a literary event and will make much polemize. Proposed with four French editors by an English agent, this manuscript was refused by Calman-Levy, and accepted by Gallimard before even as the two others did not react. This book also will turn around the topic of the Benevolent ones, and one will not refer there that with the last line of the book by this sentence: “The Benevolent ones found my trace”, actually the benevolent ones refer to the Furies of Euripide, characters of Antiquity who continued the criminals, and who found his trace.

Its precedent and single another work Bad Voltage , is appeared in 1989 with the editions Signet Book . This book does not comprise any biography of the author and comprises many references to the France and authors such as Jean Genet and Charles Baudelaire, like at the town of Paris. Besides it made there on several occasions reference to the careers and Catacombs of Paris, several actions being held there (it is advisable to specify that Jonathan Littell was itself Cataphile at the time of its stay in Paris, where it made studies). It should be noted that in 1989, Jonathan Littell was then old only 22 years. The book in question is a test of Science-fiction being held in the universe of the Cyberpunk (ISBN 0-451-16014-2).

It also published in 2006 a relationship long and detailed on the Secret services of the Fédération of Russia between 1991 and 2005 ('' The Security Organs off the Russian Federation - has Brief History 1991-2005 '') available free (in English) on Internet. He currently works on " Dryness and the humide" (provisional title), to appear at Gallimard. It is about a short biography of the learder of Belgian extrème-right-hand side Leon Degrelle, whose Littell explains to be inspired for the character of Maximilien Aue .

Works

1989 : '' Bad Voltage '', editions “Books Bookmark”, the first novel (Science fiction Cyberpunk) of Jonathan Littell, written in English, is exhausted (with the autumn 2006).

2006 : '' The Security Organs off the Russian Federation - Brief History 1991-2005 '' has - Psan Publishing House free electronic document (in English) available on Internet.

2006 : Benevolent the , Paris, Gallimard, 2006, Price Goncourt, Grand Prix of the novel of the French Academy. According to Jorge Semprun, this book is “the event of the century”.

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