Quick Facts
Biography
Andrée Chedid (Arabic: أندريه شديد) (20 March 1920 – 6 February 2011) was an Egyptian-French poet and novelist.
Life
Chedid was born in Cairo on 20 March 1920. When she was ten, she was sent to a boarding school, where she learned English and French. At fourteen, she left for Europe. She then returned to Cairo to go to the American University. Her dream was to become a dancer. She married a physician when she was twenty-two, with whom she has two children: Louis Chedid, now a famous French singer, and Michèle. Her work questions human condition and what links the individual to the world. Her writing seeks to evoke the Orient, but she focuses more in denouncing the civil war that destroys Lebanon. She lived in France from 1946 until her death. Because of this diverse background, her work is truly multicultural. Her first book was written in English: On the Trails of my Fancy. She has commented about her work that it is an eternal quest for humanity.
Andrée Chedid is the grandmother of the French rock star -M- (Louis Chedid's son) for whom she has contributed song lyrics including that of Bonoboo on the album Je dis aime.
She died on 6 February 2011 in Paris at the age of 90.
In 2012, a public library was named for her, in Paris.
Awards and honours
- 1976 Mallarmé prize
- 1979 Prix Goncourt de la Nouvelle, Le Corps et le Temps
- 2002 Prix Goncourt de la Poésie
- 2009 Grand Officier de la Légion d'honneur
Works
- À la mort, à la vie: nouvelles. Paris: Flammarion, 1992.
- L'Autre: roman. Paris: Flammarion, 1969.
- Cavernes et soleils: poésie. Paris: Flammarion, 1979.
- Cérémonial de la violence. Paris: Flammarion, 1976.
- La Cité fertile: roman. Paris: Flammarion, 1972.
- Le Dernier candidat. Paris: Éditions théâtrales Art et comédie, 1998
- Le Message. Paris: Éditions Flammarion, 2000
- L'Enfant multiple. Paris: Flammarion, 1989.
- La Maison Sans Racine. Paris: Flammarion, 1985.
- Le Sommeil délivré. Paris: Flammarion, 1952.
- Le Grand Boulevard.Paris :Flammarion,1996