Maylis de Kerangal was born in 1967 in Toulon, France, and studied history, philosophy and ethnology in Rouen and Paris. She subsequently worked for the children\u2019s and young adult literature division of the French publishing house \u00c9ditions Gallimard. After a sojourn in the US, she returned to Paris to study at the graduate school \u00c9cole des Hautes \u00c9tudes en Sciences Sociale.<\/p>\n
With the publication of her first novel in 2000, Kerangal turned to writing full time, as well as leading the children’s and young readers\u2019 book imprint \u00c9ditions du Baron Perch\u00e9. In 2010, her novel \u00bbNaissance d\u2019un pont\u00ab (2010; Eng. \u00bbBirth of a Bridge\u00ab, 2014) garnered her numerous nominations, among them the prestigious Prix M\u00e9dicis and Franz-Hessel Prize, which she shared with Kathrin R\u00f6ggla. In 2014 \u00bbNaissance d\u2019un pont\u00ab was also awarded the Gregor von Rezzori Prize. In the words of one jury, de Kerangal\u2019s \u00bbmany-layered, dramatic narrative style culminates in an evocative and impressive novel\u00ab. The construction of a monumental bridge at the beginning of the 21st<\/span> century in the fictitious, Californian city of Coca, serves to illustrate how the present \u00bbencodes itself into the minds and bodies of human beings\u00ab (\u00bbS\u00fcddeutsche Zeitung\u00ab), and that even though a workforce made up of people from all over the world doesn\u2019t come without certain problems, it can unleash powers of an unprecedented scale. In 2014, her novel \u00bbR\u00e9parer les vivants\u00ab (2013; Eng. \u00bbThe Heart: A Novel\u00ab, 2016) also garnered numerous awards, including the Grand Prix RTL Lire, the Prix Orange du Livre and the Prix Relay. Over 24 hours, \u00bbR\u00e9parer les vivants\u00ab, a rapid-fire sequence of emotionally explosive scenes that read partly like a reportage, describes the transplantation of a nineteen-year-old man\u2019s heart, beginning with the decision to donate the organ to when it is accepted by the recipient\u2019s body. \u00bbDie Welt\u00ab wrote that although de Kerangal\u2019s prose \u00bbwasn\u2019t able to prevent death, it embraced life\u00ab, and described it as \u00bbcruelly and beautifully controlled trance writing, no holds barred\u00ab, as well as \u00bbmagnificent literature\u00ab. The \u00bbFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung\u00ab praised the author\u2019s courage for addressing this subject in the form of a novel, and credited her with having \u00bbthe literary skill and ability to create an exciting and moving novel\u00ab. \u00bbR\u00e9parer les vivants\u00ab was made into a film by Katell Quill\u00e9v\u00e9r\u00e9 in 2016. Most recently de Kerangal published the novel \u00bbUn chemin de table\u00ab (2016; tr. A table runner), about the culinary explorations of a young chef.<\/p>\n Kerangal lives in Paris.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"template":"","jct-role":[1080],"jct-origin":[501],"jct-ilb-years":[610],"class_list":["post-40675","authors","type-authors","status-publish","hentry","jct-role-author","jct-origin-france","jct-ilb-years-2016-en"],"yoast_head":"\n