About our guests
Clara Dupont-Monod studied ancient French at the Sorbonne, and began her career in journalism writing for Cosmopolitan and Marianne. Her novels often draw on medieval myths and history, and have been nominated for the Prix Goncourt and the Prix Femina, two of France’s most prestigious literary awards. Her first novel to be translated into English, The Revolt (Quercus Books), which tells the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine, was published in 2020. She has been made Chevalière de l’ordre national du Mérite (Knight of the National Order of Merit) in 2022.
Ben Faccini was born in England and brought up in rural France and Italy. He worked for many years for the UNESCO in Paris. He is the author of two books, The Water-Breather (Flamingo 2002) and The Incomplete Husband (Portobello 2007). As well as novels, he has written extensively on issues in the developing world, particularly about streets and working children and innovations in education. Apart from his writing skills, Ben Faccini is a translator. He has translated into English novels such as Lydie Salvayre’s Pas pleurer (as Cry, Mother Spain) and Mahi Binebine’s Le Fou du Roi (as The King’s Fool).
- Image: Céline Nieszawer © Flammarion, 2023
