Hollande congratulates Modiano on Nobel win

French president praises author whose work explores 'the subtleties of memory and the complexity of identity'

By AFP 9 October 2014, 6:45 pm
Permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, Peter Englund, announces French writer Patrick Modiano as the winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Literature, Thursday Oct. 9, 2014, in Stockholm, Sweden. The prize was awarded 'for the art of memory with which he has evoked the most ungraspable human destinies and uncovered the life-world of the occupation,' the Swedish Academy said. (photo credit: AP Photo / Anders Wiklund)

PARIS — French President Francois Hollande on Thursday “warmly congratulated” writer Patrick Modiano on his Nobel Literature Prize win, which made him the 15th French winner of the award.

Hollande said in a statement that the prize recognizes “a considerable body of work which explores the subtleties of memory and the complexity of identity.”

Modiano, 69, described by one critic as “1 meter 90 of shyness and candor,” is one of France’s most celebrated writers, and a winner of the country’s top literary award, the Goncourt.

Modiano said was “very happy” at his victory, but “with his customary modesty told me that ‘it’s weird’,” his editor, Antoine Gallimard told AFP.

French novelist Patrick Modiano, who has won the 2014 Nobel Prize for Literature, it was announced Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014. (photo credit: AP Photo/Catherine Helie, Gallimard)

“The Republic is proud of the recognition, through this Nobel prize, of one of our greatest writers. Patrick Modiano is the 15th French person to receive this eminent distinction, confirming the great influence of our literature,” said Hollande.

French President Francois Hollande (photo credit: AP/Philippe Wojazer, Pool)

France’s Culture Minister, Fleur Pellerin, also praised the victory, a rare boost for a nation rendered morose by months of bad economic news and a political scene beset by the rise of the far right.

“This is a happy day for French literature,” said Pellerin, saying she felt “very emotional and extremely proud for France and all our fellow citizens.”

She said Modiano “represents the influence and vitality of French literature in the eyes of the world.”

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