Rapport sur moi

		Madame (1998) Born in 1949, Antoni Libera is a writer, translator, world-class expert on the work of Samuel Beckett and stage director. Referred to by Beckett as “my deputy in Eastern Europe”, he has translated into Polish and directed many of his plays. His first novel Madame (Znac, 1998) won the first prize in the first publishing competition announced by Kraków firm, Znac. The book was an instant success and has already been translated into more than fifteen languages. It was shortlisted in 2002 for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.




		Le goût de l’homme (2002) Gérard Macé was born in Paris, in 1946. He studied literature and was tempted to write at an early age. He currently teaches French literature in Paris. He has written at least fifteen books, poetic tales and poems, with the main object being a very thorough reflection on creation, and on literature in particular. Gérard Macé’s latest books are Le singe et le miroir (Le temps qu’il fait, 1998), Bois dormant et autres poèmes en prose (Gallimard Poésie, 2002) and Le goût de l’homme (Le promeneur, 2002).




		*Nótaí ón Lár* A novelist and a critic, Liam Mac Cóil is a Dubliner. As well as winning an Oireachtas Prize for his first novel, An Dochtúir Áthas (Doctor Joy, 1994), he was shortlisted for the Irish Times Literary Prize. His second novel, An Claíomh Solais (The Sword of Light), was published in 1998, as well as a book for children, Toirealach Ó Cearúlláin, in 2000. His most recent book, Nótaí ón Lár (Notes from the Centre), is based on the writer’s *diary in which he ponders the big questions of our times. His next work and third novel, Fontenoy, will be published in May 2004 by Leabhar Breac.*




		Had I a Thousand Lives (2003) Medbh McGuckian was born and is based in Belfast. She teaches creative writing at Queen’s University Belfast. She has won numerous prizes, the British national poetry competition in 1979, the Denis Devlin Award and, in 2002, the Forward Prize for Best Poem. She has published many collections of poetry, first in the UK and then in Ireland, with Gallery Press: The Flower Master and Other Poems (1993), Venus and the Rain (1994), On Ballycastle Beach (1995), Marconi’s Cottage (1991), the latter shortlisted for the Irish Times/Aer Lingus Irish Literature Prize for Poetry, Captain Lavender (1994), Selected Poems (1997), Drawing Ballerinas (2001), The Face of the Earth (2002), and Had I A Thousand Lives (2003). She is a member of Aosdána.





		Le nomade immobile (2000) Born in 1920, in Tunis, Albert Memmi studied philosophy in the University of Algiers and started teaching it. He also worked as a journalist for the weekly Tunisian magazine L’Action. When the country gained independence in 1956, he moved to Paris where he still resides. He started a double career both as a writer and a researcher. His writing talent was recognized by A. Camus, J. P. Sartre, Vercors and L. S. Senghor. He is described as “the greatest Tunisian author writing in French” and “with Albert Camus, he is at the forefront of Maghrebi literature”. His writing is both a process of self-discovery and one of reconciliation with his past where he studies the complexities of cultural divisions and of his mixed heritage.





		Cilpa (2003) Laima Muktupavela was born in Rezekne (Latvia) and graduated in History and Philosophy. She has published stories since 1993 and achieved popularity with her first novel The Champignon Testament. Her plays, The Night of Wonder and Cilpa have been performed in amateur theatres and her play…like a part of everything... was performed on German radio. She is currently employed by the Writers Union. In 2002, she won the Latvian annual literature prize and an award at “Klucis” (The Block), a competition for short plays.




		The Dancers Dancing (1999) Éilís Ní Dhuibhne was born in Dublin and educated at University College Dublin. She writes short stories, novels, plays ands books for children and has written in both English and Irish. Her works include The Bray House, Midwife to the Fairies, The Inland Ice, The Pale Gold of Alaska, The Dancers Dancing (Blackstaff Press, 1999), Dunmharu sa Daingean (Cois Lif, 2000) and Cailini Beaga Ghleann na mBlath. Her books for children include The Hiring Fair and The Sparkling Rain. She has been the recipient of many literary awards. Her novel The Dancers Dancing was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction in 2000. Her novels and stories have been translated into numerous foreign languages. She is a member of Aosdána.





		Star of the Sea (2003) Joseph O’Connor was born in Dublin in 1963. He has written several novels, Cowboys and Indians (Sinclair-Stevenson, 1991), Desperadoes (Flamingo, 1993), The Salesman (Secker and Warburg, 1998), Inishowen (Secker and Warburg, 2000) as well as plays, Red Roses and Petrol (Metheun Drama, 1995) and The Weeping of Angels (Dublin, Gate Theatre,1997). His latest novel, Star of the Sea (Prix Littéraire Européen Madeleine Zepter 2004 - Phébus, 2002) was warmly welcomed both in Europe and in the U.S.A. It was voted among the best fifteen novels of 2003 by the magazine Le Point. The book is translated into 18 languages. Joseph O’Connor has won several prizes for his work.





		La mémoire saturée (2003) Born in Paris of Polish parents who had settled in France before World War Two, Régine Robin was educated in France. She now teaches at the Department of Sociology of the Université du Québec and has published more than 20 works of both fiction and non-fiction. Her novels are La Québécoite (XYZ, Montréal, 1993), Le naufrage du siècle (Berg International,1995) et L’immense fatigue des pierres (XYZ, Montréal, 1997). An historian, sociologist and novelist, she has worked on memory, both collective and individual, as well as on problems of identity. She has won several Prizes such as the Prix du Gouverneur Général du Canada (1987) and the Grand Prix du Livre de la Ville de Montréal.





		Des maisons au coeur (2001) Born in 1947 in Paris, Denis Tillinac is a writer, journalist and director of the Editions de la Table Ronde. Following the success of Spleen en Corrèze (1979), the author has published more than 20 books for which he received numerous prizes. He is also the author of travel stories including Le Bar des palmistes (Arléa), which describes his sojourn in French Guyana. He has also written two essays : Dernier verre au Danton (Laffont) and Les masques de l’éphémère (La Table Ronde). Denis Tillinac is a former adviser to President Jacques Chirac on the promotion of the French language.




		*David and the Goliath Woman* Paul Verner was born in R´ymarov, Czech Republic, in 1947. He currently is a political commentator for the Prague Daily newspaper, Právo. He is an associate of the Czech branch of the International Writers’ Organisation. He has written numerous novels such as Dranciás, A Family Affair, Prague Hyenas, The Red-and-White Cobra and David and the Goliath Woman. He has also written plays which have all been produced in Czech theatres The Romas and Juliet, They All Shoot at the Bear, The Saracen Devil and The Lays of Old.