Marie-Aude Murail facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Marie-Aude Murail
Murail photographed at home by Claudie Rocard-Laperrousaz in June 2007
Born	6 May 1954 (1954-05-06) (age 71) Le Havre, France
Occupation	Writer
Nationality	French
Alma mater	Sorbonne University
Spouse	Pierre-Michel Robert (1973–present)
Children	3
Relatives	Elvire Murail (sister) Lorris Murail (brother) Tristan Murail (brother)

Marie-Aude Murail (born 6 May 1954) is a famous French writer. She is well-known for her many books for children and teenagers. Her stories cover lots of different topics like stepfamilies, finding out who you are, and dealing with tough times or illnesses. Her books are for all ages, from young readers to young adults. They include everyday dramas, funny stories, detective mysteries, thrillers, fantasy, and historical adventures.

Her father, Gerard Murail, was a poet, and her mother, Marie-Thérèse Barrois, was a journalist. Her brother, Lorris Murail, and her sister, Elvire Murail (also known as Moka), are also writers. Her other older brother, Tristan Murail, is a music composer.

In 1973, she married Pierre Robert. They have three children: Benjamin (born 1977), Charles (born 1987), and Constance (born 1994).

Discovering Marie-Aude Murail's Life

Marie-Aude Murail was born in Le Havre, France, in 1954. She started writing when she was just twelve years old.

She studied literature at the Sorbonne University in Paris. For her final project, she explored how to make classic novels easier for young kids to read. Before writing her own books, she published many short stories. These stories appeared in women's magazines between 1980 and 1987. Her first two novels for adults, Passage (1985) and Voici Lou (1986), were published in Switzerland.

Since her first children's story, "C'est mieux d'être bleu," in 1985, she has written over 80 books for young readers. Some of her most famous works include the "Emilien," "Nils Hazard," and "L'Espionne" series. Most of her books are published by well-known French publishers like L'Ecole des Loisirs and Bayard.

Exploring the Emilien Series

In the "Emilien" series, Marie-Aude Murail writes about Emilien Pardini. He is a boy who is fourteen years old at the start of the series. Emilien lives alone with his mother, Sylvie. The books follow him as he grows up through his teenage years. Murail uses humor and drama to show what life is like for a modern single-parent family. She also explores the everyday challenges and changes of being a teenager.

Unraveling the Nils Hazard Mysteries

Alongside the "Emilien" books, Murail created an adventure series called "Nils Hazard." Nils Hazard is a quirky expert in Etruscan history and a teacher at the Sorbonne University. He solves murders and strange cases. He gets help from his former student, Catherine Roque. She becomes his secretary and later his girlfriend in the series.

Diving into Fantasy Worlds

Marie-Aude Murail also writes fantasy stories. In "Ma vie a changé" (1997), a librarian deals with a house elf. Her style became even more imaginative when she mixed daily life with vampires in "Amour, vampire et loup-garou" (1998) or aliens in "Tom Lorient" (1998).

In 2002, she wrote "Golem," inspired by teenagers who love video games. This book brings virtual reality into the real world. "Golem" was a special project because she wrote it with her brother Lorris and sister Elvire. They each shared their thoughts on the experience on Marie-Aude Murail's website. She also worked with her brother Lorris on another book, "L'expérienceur" (2003).

"Golem" starts when Majid Badach wins a computer. It's from a company called Priceshrinkers. One day, a video game called Golem starts on its own. Majid's life, and his teacher's, quickly change.

Exploring History Through Stories

After "Jésus, comme un roman ..." (1997), Murail wrote a six-part series for a magazine. She took her readers to six different historical periods in "D'amour et de sang" (1999). She also honored her favorite author, Charles Dickens, in a book about him (2005). Then, she took readers back to 19th-century England with "Miss Charity" (2008). This book is like the autobiography of a Victorian artist, inspired by the life of Beatrix Potter.

Diverse Stories for Young Readers

Even though her readers have grown up, many still ask about characters like Emilien or Nils. However, Murail now writes novels that change time and place with each story. Teenage life is still central to her books. But now, she also includes family, social, and political ideas.

She uses real-life experiences and current events in her stories. For example, she wrote about children without proper papers and the school system in "Vive la République!" (2005). She also wrote about a company and a kindergarten facing similar pressures in "Papa et maman sont dans un bateau" (2009). Even with serious topics, her books are never sad or heavy. Murail believes that children's books don't need sad endings. She thinks it's wrong to write them that way. This is her main rule as a writer. As she wrote in "Miss Charity," "life, Life" are the very last words.

Books for Younger Readers

Her first novel for very young readers was a funny fairy tale called Mystère (1987). After that, she wrote many more books for younger children.

Murail also wrote over twenty illustrated stories for the monthly magazine J'aime Lire. Most of these stories were later published as books.

The L'espionne Series

The "L'espionne" series is illustrated by Frédéric Joos.

Her stories also appear in Je Bouquine magazine. These are longer stories for older readers (10–15 years old).

Helping Kids Learn to Read

Murail is also interested in teaching children how to read. For five years, she worked with a primary school teacher, Christine Thiéblemont. Later, an educational counselor, Patricia Bucheton, joined them. Together, they wrote a reading textbook for first graders called "Bulle." Murail has talked about why she helped with this project. She believes children's literature and reading aloud are very important for a child's imagination.

• Bulle méthode de lecture pour le CP - cycle 2 (2008).

Thoughts on Being a Children's Writer

Since writing her university thesis, Murail has always thought about the purpose of her work. She has written articles, given talks, and even published books about it. In 1993, she wrote a book sharing what she learned from meeting her readers. Ten years later, she wrote another book explaining why she chose to "remain in childhood" as a writer. She has kept her readers engaged as they grow up.

Awards and Recognition

Oh, Boy! is Marie-Aude Murail's most popular book. It has been sold and translated more than any of her other works. It was even made into a television show. Many of her books have won awards in France and other countries. They have been translated into about fifteen languages.

For example, the German translation of her book Simple won the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis. This award is chosen by a jury of German teenagers. The French version of Simple had already won the Prix des lycéens allemands in 2006.

Today, Marie-Aude Murail sells about 200,000 books each year in France.

In 2004, she received the Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur. This is a very high honor in France, given for her entire career. In 2022, Murail won the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award. This award recognizes a living author or illustrator whose complete works have made lasting contributions to children's literature.

Screenwriting Work

Marie-Aude Murail has also worked as a screenwriter:

• She wrote the screenplay for Baby-sitter Blues. This was a TV film shown in 1997.
• She was a co-screenwriter for the movie Malabar Princess (2004).