Created by Sandrine Babu and Guillaume Perilhou, it highlights French-speaking novels published between August and February, which did not receive the attention they deserved. This prize aims to shine a spotlight on unjustly forgotten works.
The jury, made up of figures from the literary and media world, brings together Sandrine Babu (bookseller), Selma Bensouda (literary programmer), Thaël Boost (writer), Sylvestre Brodziak (bookseller), Nicolas Carreau (journalist and writer), Laura El Makki (author and journalist).
At their side are Héloïse Goy (journalist), Inès de la Motte Saint-Pierre (journalist and director), Bénédicte Pialat (bookstore customer), Gilles Plu (bookstore customer), Paulo Queiroz (literary blogger) and François- Xavier Robert (literary podcast editor).
The process opens in February, when eight novels published between August and February will be selected. In April, this list will be reduced to four finalist works. Since the second edition, foreign novels translated into French can also be offered. The jury and the public will vote equally, the latter bringing together the bookstore’s customers and its subscribers on social networks. The award ceremony will take place in June.
Last year, the prize was awarded to Adeline Fleury for her novel Heaven in its fury (Éditions de l’Observatoire).
It is a town between sea and fields, with its church, its farms, its rough and taciturn inhabitants. With his nightmares too, because what we did to the Bellay twins’ horse, no animal would be capable of it. Julia, veterinarian, and Stéphane, farrier, ex-city dwellers recently arrived in the region, are convinced: only a man could have committed such an atrocity. As the days go by, new carcasses are found, and the villagers are in uproar – the Varou, a legendary monster thirsty for revenge, has returned! At the same time, strange events are occurring in the surrounding undergrowth, while a strange kid, the fairy child as they call him, prowls around the animal remains.
– The editor’s summary for Heaven in its fury
The Prix de l’Instant is supported by ActuaLitté, Valgirardin, Ex-Libris Paris, and Le Chocolat des Français. Last year, the winner received a personalized bookplate and a selection of artisanal chocolates.
Opened in November 2017 in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, the bookstore is located in premises that hosted “Books Without Borders” for 35 years, specializing in rare works and travel stories. Now general, it offers a café space for literary meetings, exhibitions and a section dedicated to stationery.
Image credits: Librairie L’instant
Par Sara Verrecchia
Contact : [email protected]
