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The Indigo Press has bought the rights to My Favourite by Sarah Jollien-Fardel, translated from French by Holly James, which won an English PEN Translates award earlier this year, as well as the Swiss Prix Goncourt.
Commissioning editor Susie Nicklin acquired world English language rights from Sabine Wespieser at the French Publishers’ Agency. The book will be published in paperback on 17th October 2024, featuring a cover design by Luke Bird. The book is described as a “powerful novel about departure and return, of love, guilt and shame, and the paralysing effects of trauma”.
The synopsis reads: “Jeanne learns from an early age to dodge her father’s abuse, but her mother and sister resign themselves to his brutality. One day when she is eight he attacks her viciously, angered by her self-assurance. Convinced that the village doctor will put an end to their nightmare, she is shocked by his silence. Moving to Lausanne, unable to come to terms with her past and to engage fully with life, she nevertheless finds solace in the arms of lovers and in the waters of Lake Geneva, while further tragedy fuels her rage.”
First published in French in 2022, the book has scooped awards including the FNAC novel prize, the Mille Pages prize and the Goncourt des Détenus, which is selected by incarcerated people in France. The French edition has sold more than 50,000 copies to date, according to The Indigo Press.
Nicklin said: “Sadly – tragically – male violence against women remains one of the most prevalent forms of emotional, financial and physical abuse in the world today. This year The Indigo Press is highlighting this issue with two brilliant novels in 2024, one of which is My Favourite by Sarah Jollien-Fardel. Written in brutal, almost bitter language the author shows us a small valley in Switzerland where men damage women with impunity. I was blown away by its power and strength.”
The author added: “I am moved that Jeanne, whom I love dearly, lives not only in my mind but also beyond the mountains that created her, further than Lake Geneva who polished her pain. I have realised with pride that the story of Jeanne, her emancipatory and terribly human struggle, knows no frontiers. I am happy that Jeanne, thanks to the beautiful Indigo Press, continues on her universal quest.”