The Nice Baie des Anges literary prize was awarded on May 24, 2013, to Valérie TONG CUONG for “L’Atelier des Miracles,” published by JC Lattès. It will be presented by Christian Estrosi during the official opening ceremony of the festival, next Friday, June 7.
According to jury member Jacques Vidal, who selected this novel: “L’Atelier des Miracles is a fable about solitude in the midst of the crowd, about human relationships, and about the inability to communicate with others, as well as selfless altruism. But it’s also a book about the unsuspected resources each of us possesses, hidden, and which emerge when we encounter a change in life’s trajectory.”
The jury, chaired by Franz-Olivier Giesbert, had to choose between eight novels: “Nouilles froides à Pyongyang” by Jean-Luc Coatalem (Grasset), “Je vais mieux” by David Foenkinos (Gallimard), “Roma/Roman” by Philippe de La Genardière (Actes Sud), “Le garçon qui n’existe pas” by Patrice Leconte (Albin Michel), “Un écrivain, un vrai” by Pia Petersen (Actes Sud), “Un homme effacé” by Alexandre Postel (Gallimard), “Le souper de l’Abbesse” by Jean Siccardi (Presses de la Cité), and “L’Atelier des Miracles” by Valérie Tong Cuong (JC Lattès).
The 2013 jury included: Paule Constant, Irène Frain, Aurélie Hustin de Gubernatis, Didier van Cauwelaert, Laurent Seksik, Jacques Vidal, municipal councilor delegated to literature, and Olivier Biscaye (editorial director of the Nice-Matin daily newspaper). For the third year, the public from the Côte d’Azur is also involved in the deliberations of this literary prize.
For F-O Giesbert: “It’s a prize that exists and arouses desire, it benefits from a beautiful track record and has ended up establishing itself, just like the literary festival that promotes it.”
