Conversation

19 November 2004, 6pm

Salle des Actes

Audio extract

(Conversation - 1h 01mins) All rights reserved

 

The transcription of the interview, accompanied by an introduction and a bibliography, was published by Etudes britanniques contemporaines. Gallix, François, Vanessa Guignery et Catherine Rihoit. "Jennifer Johnston at the Sorbonne." Etudes britanniques contemporaines 28 (juin 2005): 115-41.

 

On Friday, November 19^th, 2004, the ERCLA research centre welcomed the Irish novelist Jennifer Johnston for the publication of the French translation of her latest novel, This is not a novel.

Jennifer Johnston was born in Dublin where she studied at Trinity College. She the daughter of playwright Denis Johnston and actress and director Shelagh Richards. She lives in London. She published a dozen of novels set en Ireland some of which have been adapted for the screen, and she wrote for the stage, more particularly one-act plays collected in The Nightingale, not the Lark (1988). Anthony Burgess considered her as the greatest Irish novelist and wrote about her: “Her art is unique and near perfection". Her two latest novels are The Gingerbread Woman (2000), translated as Petite Musique des adieux and This is Not a Novel (2002) translated as Ceci n'est pas un roman.

 

The event took the form of a conversation between Jennifer Johnston, François Gallix, Vanessa Guignery and Catherine Rihoit. The audience could then ask questions.