Adeline Dieudonné wins the Renaudot des Lycéens award with 'La Vraie Vie' (Real Life)
'La Vraie Vie' (L'Iconoclaste), by young Belgian author Adeline Dieudonné, was one of the sensations of the autumn literary season, and has just won the 'Renaudot des Lycéens' award. This is yet another award for her novel, which has already won the 'Prix Première Plume 2017' and the 'Prix du Roman Fnac 2018'. Critics, including Jérôme Garcin in L'Obs, Bernard Pivot in the JDD, and not forgetting Le Figaro Littéraire, were almost unanimous in praising the talent of this 36-year old from Brussels.
La Vraie Vie is a very dark novel. To extract her brother from what she perceives as a kind of evil spell, the young heroine/narrator embarks on a perilous quest which she will not survive unscathed. The book is both tragic and grotesque. The nightmare (if that's not what it is, then it is very similar to one) is interspersed with moments of nervous laughter. Adeline Dieudonné depicts wild, uncompromising characters with her funny, dazzling writing. It is a harsh, sensual world. She has written a very punchy novel.
The book will be translated into English and Italian. The German, Spanish and Dutch versions will follow later.