Frédéric Joignot receives the 30 Million Friends 2024 novel prize

In the series of literary prizes awarded since the start of the literary season, it is at the “Goncourt of the Animals” to announce its winner. A week after the proclamation of the Goncourt and Renaudot prizes, another jury, very VIP, gathered as it has done since 1982: on the first floor of the Drouant restaurant, an emblematic place in the capital, where the prestigious prize is announced each year Goncourt. The literary prize 30 Million Friends has in fact all the attributes of the latter: a jury which brings together the cream of the literary society, a historic place and a common lounge, of the same name as the prize, where discussions go well around a lunch for choose the author who will win the prize from eight selected works. It rewards a novel and an essay of literary quality where the animal is in the spotlight, whether or not it is the main character of the work.

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A novel of “great literary outfit”

It’s 2:20 p.m. when the doors to the lounge finally open. Leftovers from lunch sit on the table. The members of the jury – all lovers of the animal cause and among whom we find the former president of the Académie Goncourt, Didier Decoin, the academician Frédéric Vitoux, the president of the 30 Millions d'Amis Foundation Reha Hutin, the novelists Irène Frain and Didier van Cauwelaert – come together behind publisher Teresa Cremisi for the proclamation of the 2024 winner of the literary prize in the category «roman» : this is Frédéric Joignot, former journalist for Libération, Actuel and Le Monde and co-founder of World Magazinefor his autobiographical novel Zoography (Editions Maurice Nadeau).

In category “essay”it was Françoise Malby-Anthony who was rewarded for her book The wisdom of elephants (Albin Michel). The latter is the founder, in 1998 with her now deceased husband, of a reserve in South Africa which welcomes not only elephants but also other emblematic species of the continent, such as giraffes or rhinoceroses. They succeed Cédric Sapin-Defour for his book Its smell after the rain (Stock) and Tom Mustill for his essay How to Speak Whale (Albin Michel).

The journalist's novel was elected in the first round of voting, by four votes, against one in favor of that of Claudie Hunzinger, It's snowing on the pianist (Grasset). The voices of the Swiss writer Joël Dicker and the novelist and philosopher Frédéric Lenoir were missing, who were not present. Usual figure of this “Goncourt of animals”the writer and essayist Michel Houellebecq was also conspicuous by his absence: suspecting the media of coming for his person, he preferred to withdraw from the jury. As soon as the name of the winner is announced, faces turn towards the door to welcome the journalist who has come to receive his prize amid applause, in a heated room. “Often, we have some indulgences for people who love animals, you have raised the level, your novel is of very high literary quality”he launches Teresa Crimisi.

A price that gives back its place to the animal

“It is the one which seemed to us the most complete, the most original, the editor then tells us. These are short stories one after the other which draw a kind of self-portrait of the author as he recounts his relationships with chickens, dogs, cats. It’s very well written.” At first glance, however, it was not the book that caught the keen eye of the jury members. Its simple, white cover and the title didn't mean much to them. “We were all around First Feathers de Charlie Gilmore (bestseller in England, editor’s note) but you see there are surprises, exposes Reha Hutin. We discuss books a lot, everyone read them with passion, that's how Zoography was finally chosen in the first round.

For her part, Irène Frain speaks of a book which “seduced everyone”. “We all had a deep feeling of empathy with him, even if we are not constructed in the same way through this or that animal. His language is so beautiful, his construction so convincing and his total sincerity that I think many readers will be able to identify.she enthuses. “It’s true that literary quality was this year’s added value”race ride Didier van Cauwelaert.

The winner warmly thanked the members of the jury. “This prize gives back space to this type of writing which deals with the animal question, which has always been present, giving it real importance and I find that fantastic”he rejoiced. “It’s something that is evolving in society and it’s about time because if we take the history of literature and the history of animals, it’s a story that goes back centuries, it’s enough to look at the great mythologies which gave them a real place as in Egyptian mythology with cats, but also in tales and legends. The presence of the animal in literature is truly historic.”

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Regarding the essay prize awarded to Françoise Malby-Anthony, Didier van Cauwelaert readily explained the jury's choice. “To speak well about animals, you have to speak simple, fair and profound. There is the depth of reflection, the precision on the themes to make us share both the attachment and the mystery: defending animals is also respecting their mystery, it is trying to understand them as best as possible and not wanting to reduce them to the knowledge we have of them or the use we make of them.” He was delighted with the choice of the book which talks about elephants, an animal that he admires. “The elephant has such a need for understanding, in this sense he is quite close to the dog when he chooses humans, but once he has chosen, this relationship must go far, it can create exchanges – telepathic – which are of incredible strength”he added.

The 30 Million Friends Foundation awarded Frédéric Joignot a check worth 3,000 euros and Françoise Malby-Anthony a check for 1,000 euros, which they must pay in full to an animal protection association of their choice .