Louis de Bernières facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Louis de Bernières
FRSL
|
|
|---|---|
De Bernières in 2023
|
|
| Born | 8 December 1954 Woolwich, London, England |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Period | 1990–present |
Louis de Bernières (born December 8, 1954) is an English author famous for his novels. He is best known for his 1994 book, Captain Corelli's Mandolin. This book is a historical fiction novel, which means it's a story set in the past, and it's also a war novel, a story that takes place during a war.
In 1993, Granta magazine named him one of the "20 Best of Young British Novelists." The next year, Captain Corelli's Mandolin was released and won the Commonwealth Writers Prize. The book became a bestseller around the world and has been translated into more than 10 languages.
In 2006, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, a special honor for talented writers. He also has an honorary doctorate from De Montfort University.
Politically, he has said he is a Eurosceptic, which means he had doubts about the United Kingdom's membership in the European Union. He supported the UK's decision to leave, often called Brexit.
Contents
Personal Life
Louis H. P. de Bernières-Smart was born near Woolwich in London in 1954. He grew up in a county called Surrey. His last name, de Bernières, comes from a French Huguenot ancestor who moved to England long ago.
He went to Bradfield College and joined the army at 18. However, he left after four months of training at the Sandhurst military academy. He later studied at the Victoria University of Manchester and the Institute of Education, University of London.
Before becoming a full-time writer, he had many different jobs. He worked as a car mechanic, a motorcycle messenger, and an English teacher in the country of Colombia. He now lives in Suffolk, England.
De Bernières is also a skilled musician. He plays the flute, mandolin, clarinet, and guitar. He says he is an "enthusiastic but badly-educated and erratic" musician. His books often mention music and composers he likes. For example, he mentions the composer Vivaldi in Captain Corelli's Mandolin. He has a condition called dystonia, which can make playing instruments more difficult.
Famous Books
The Latin American Trilogy
De Bernières said that his time in Colombia and the books of author Gabriel García Márquez had a big impact on his first three novels. These books are:
- The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts (1990)
- Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord (1991)
- The Troublesome Offspring of Cardinal Guzman (1992)
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
His most famous book is Captain Corelli's Mandolin. The story is about an Italian soldier named Captain Corelli. During World War II, he is sent to the Greek island of Cephalonia as part of the army occupying the island.
In 2001, the book was made into a movie. De Bernières was not happy with the film version. He said, "It would be impossible for a parent to be happy about its baby's ears being put on backwards." However, he did say he liked the movie's soundtrack.
After the book and movie came out, Cephalonia became a popular place for tourists. De Bernières said he was not pleased that some businesses on the island were using his book's name to attract visitors.
Red Dog
His 2001 book Red Dog was inspired by a statue of a dog he saw in Western Australia. In 2011, it was made into a popular Australian movie.
Birds Without Wings
Birds Without Wings (2004) is set in Turkey at the end of the Ottoman Empire. It tells the story of people from different backgrounds living in a small village. The book covers the rise of Kemal Atatürk, a famous Turkish leader, and the Gallipoli Campaign during World War I.
Notwithstanding
Notwithstanding (2009) is a collection of short stories about a fictional English village. The stories are about the quirky people who live there. The village is based on Hambledon, the real village where de Bernières grew up.
Some of the stories are based on his own life. In an afterword, he wrote that he realized how strange and wonderful his own country is. He said, "Britain really is an immense lunatic asylum. That is one of the things that distinguishes us among the nations."
The Daniel Pitt Trilogy
This series of three books follows the life of Daniel Pitt, a flying ace in World War I, and his family through the 20th century. The story was inspired by the life of de Bernières's own grandfather. The books in the trilogy are:
- The Dust that Falls from Dreams (2015)
- So Much Life Left Over (2018)
- The Autumn of the Ace (2020)
