Sebastian Faulks facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sebastian Faulks
CBE FRSL
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Faulks in 2008
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| Born | 20 April 1953 Donnington, Berkshire, England
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| Alma mater | Emmanuel College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Known for | The French Trilogy |
| Spouse(s) |
Veronica Youlten
(m. 1989) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Edward Faulks, Baron Faulks (brother) Sir Neville Faulks (uncle) |
Sebastian Charles Faulks, born on April 20, 1953, is a British writer, journalist, and TV/radio personality. He is famous for his historical novels that take place in France. These include The Girl at the Lion d'Or, Birdsong, and Charlotte Gray.
He has also written books set in modern times, like A Week in December (2009) and Paris Echo (2018). Faulks even wrote a James Bond adventure called Devil May Care (2008). He also continued the popular P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves series with Jeeves and the Wedding Bells (2013). You might have seen him as a team captain on the BBC Radio 4 literary quiz show, The Write Stuff.
Contents
About Sebastian Faulks
His Early Life
Sebastian Faulks was born on April 20, 1953, in Donnington, Berkshire, England. His parents were Peter Faulks and Pamela Lawless. His father was a brave soldier who later became a lawyer and judge. Sebastian has a brother, Edward Faulks, Baron Faulks, who is also a lawyer and a government official. His uncle, Sir Neville Faulks, was a High Court judge.
Sebastian went to Elstree School and then Wellington College, Berkshire. He studied English at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Later, in 2008, he became an honorary fellow there. While at Cambridge, he was on the TV show University Challenge. He joked that his team might have lost because they went to the pub before the show!
His Writing Career
After college, Faulks taught at a private school. Then he became a journalist for newspapers like the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph. His first novel, A Trick of the Light, came out in 1984.
In 1986, he became the first literary editor for The Independent newspaper. He then became deputy editor of the Independent on Sunday in 1989. That same year, he published The Girl at the Lion d'Or, his first historical novel set in France. He left The Independent in 1991 and worked as a freelance writer for many years.
After his book Birdsong (1993) became very popular, Faulks stopped journalism to focus on writing full-time. He has written many more novels since then, including Where My Heart Used to Beat (2015), Paris Echo (2018), and Snow Country (2021). In 1993, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. In 2002, he received the CBE award for his contributions to literature.
Faulks often appears on British TV and radio. He was a regular team captain on the BBC Radio 4 quiz show The Write Stuff from 1998 to 2014. On this show, panelists would write funny imitations of famous authors' styles. Faulks published a collection of his efforts in a book called Pistache (2006).
In 2011, Faulks hosted a four-part BBC Two TV series called Faulks on Fiction. This series explored British novels and their characters. He also wrote a book with the same name to go with the series.
His Personal Life
Sebastian Faulks married Veronica Youlten in 1989. They have three children: two sons, William (born 1990) and Arthur (born 1996), and a daughter, Holly (born 1992). Faulks is a big fan of the West Ham United football club. He enjoys playing tennis and drinking wine.
He is also a longtime cricket fan and player. He is a member of the Authors XI cricket team.
In 2014, Faulks was one of 200 public figures who signed a letter opposing Scottish independence. This was before the referendum on the issue. From 2013 to 2018, he was part of a government group that planned how to remember the First World War.
His Novels
Critics have praised Faulks for being both popular and a serious literary writer. The Sunday Telegraph called him "One of the most impressive novelists of his generation." Trevor Nunn described Faulks's 2005 novel, Human Traces, as "A masterpiece."
Faulks is most famous for his three novels set in France during the early 1900s. The first was The Girl at the Lion d'Or (1989). Then came Birdsong (1993) and Charlotte Gray (1998). Birdsong and Charlotte Gray were best-sellers. Charlotte Gray was even nominated for the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. In 2003, Birdsong was voted 13th in the BBC's Big Read poll, which aimed to find Britain's most loved novels.
In 2007, Faulks published Engleby. This book is set in Cambridge in the 1970s. It is told by a university student named Mike Engleby. Engleby is a lonely person, and readers might wonder if he is telling the whole truth, especially when another student disappears. Faulks said the idea for the novel came to him when he woke up with the character's voice in his head. This book was different for Faulks because it was set in more recent times and told from the first person.
To celebrate 100 years since Ian Fleming's birth, the creators of James Bond asked Faulks to write a new James Bond novel in 2006. Faulks thought it was a strange request after writing a serious historical novel. But he realized it could reach new readers. The book, Devil May Care, quickly became a best-seller in the UK. Critics said Faulks did a great job of capturing the Bond style.
Faulks's 2009 novel, A Week in December, takes place in London during the week before Christmas in 2007. It follows the lives of many different characters. Faulks said the book was inspired by the banking crisis of that time. He chose 2007 because it was clear that big changes were coming, even if people weren't ready for them. The novel also touches on reality TV and other modern issues.
His most recent novel, The Seventh Son, was published in September 2023. This book explores ideas about the future and science.
Book to Screen Adaptations
In 2001, Charlotte Gray was made into a film. It starred Cate Blanchett and was directed by Gillian Armstrong.
In 2010, a stage play of Birdsong opened in London. It was adapted by Rachel Wagstaff and directed by Trevor Nunn. The play later went on several successful tours across the country. In 2012, Birdsong was also made into a two-part BBC TV series. It starred Eddie Redmayne.
Awards and Honors
- 1994 British Book Awards Author of the Year.
- 1994 Franco British Society Award (winner) for Birdsong.
- 1997 Premio Bancarella Italy (shortlist) for Birdsong.
- 1998 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction (shortlist) for Charlotte Gray.
- 2002 Appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), "For services to Literature".
- 2006 Honorary doctorate, Tavistock Clinic, University of East London.
- 2009 British Book Awards Popular Fiction Award (winner) for Devil May Care.
- 2010 Honorary doctorate, University of Hertfordshire.
- 2010 City of Zaragoza Award for Fiction (winner) for Birdsong.
- 2014 Bollinger Everyman Award (shortlist) for Jeeves and the Wedding Bells
- 2016 Tolstoy Prize, Moscow (shortlist) for Birdsong.
- 2018 Specsavers National Book Awards UK Author (shortlist) for Paris Echo.
See also
In Spanish: Sebastian Faulks para niños
