Prix du Meilleur Livre Etranger (Foreign Book Prize)

Each year, Sofitel Paris Le Faubourg has the honor of hosting the prestigious Foreign Book Prize ceremony.

Established in 1948 by a group of literary directors from publishing houses, this award was one of the first to recognize foreign literature in France. Since 2011, it has been supported by Sofitel and is presented at Sofitel Paris Le Faubourg.

The Foreign Book Prize honors each year a novel and an essay, originally published abroad and translated into French. Its jury, composed of distinguished literary critics and publishers, has included renowned figures such as Maurice Nadeau and Raymond Queneau.

This year, Hisham Matar shines in the Fiction category with his novel Mes Amis, published by Gallimard. In the Non-Fiction category, Anna Funder takes the prize with L’Invisible Madame Orwell, published by Éditions Héloïse d’Ormesson.

Sofitel Paris Le Faubourg, formerly known as Hôtel Vouillement, is a landmark for writers and poets. It was mentioned by Marcel Proust in In Search of Lost Time and was a favorite gathering place for many authors and poets, including Pierre Louÿs, Jean Cocteau, Robert Desnos, Luigi Pirandello, and Anna de Noailles.

By hosting the Foreign Book Prize ceremony, Sofitel Paris Le Faubourg continues its longstanding relationship with the literary world.

The Sofitel Best Foreign Book Prize was awarded:

In 2024,  in the novel category, to Hisham Matar, Mes Amis (Gallimard)and, in the essay category to Anna Funder, L’invisible Madame Orwell, (Éditions Héloïse D’Ormesson)

In 2023, in the novel category, to Sebastian Barry, Au bon vieux temps de Dieu (Joëlle Losfeld Editions) and, in the essay category to Chris de Stoop, Le Livre de Daniel, (Globe)

In 2022, in the novel category, to Juan Gabriel Vásquez, Une rétrospective (Le Seuil) and, in the essay category to Maria Stepanova, En mémoire de la mémoire, (Stock)

In 2021, in the novel category, to  Gouzel Iakhina, Les enfants de la Volga (Noir sur Blanc) and, in the essay category to Kapka Kassabova, L’écho du lac (Marchialy)

In 2020, in the novel category, to  Colum McCann, Apeirogon (Belfond) and, in the essay category to Daniel Mendelsohn, Trois anneaux. Un conte d’Exil (Flammarion)

In 2019, in the novel category, to  Christoph Hein, L’Ombre d’un père (Metaillié) and, in the essay category to Wolfram Eilenberger, Le Temps des magiciens (Albin Michel)

In 2018, in the novel category, to  Eduardo Halfon, Deuils (Quai Voltaire) and, in the essay category to Stefano Massini, Les Frères Lehman (Éditions du Globe)

In 2017, in the novel category, to  Viet Thanh Nguyen, Le Sympathisant (Belfond)  and, in the essay category to Philippe Sands, Retour à Lemberg (Albin Michel)

In 2016, in the novel category, to  Drago Jančar, Cette nuit, je l’ai vue (Phébus) and, in the essay category to Samar Yazbek, Les Portes du néant (Stock)

In 2015, in the novel category, to   Martin Amis, La Zone d’intérêt (Calmann-Lévy) and, in the essay category to Christoph Ransmayr, Atlas d’un homme inquiet (Albin Michel)

In 2014, in the novel category, to  Helen Macdonald, M pour Mabel (Fleuve éditions) and, in the essay category to Göran Rosenberg, Une brève halte après Auschwitz (Seuil)

In 2013, in the novel category, to  Alan Hollinghurst, L’Enfant de l’étranger (Albin Michel)  and, in the essay category to Erwin Mortier, Psaumes balbutiés. Livre d’heures de ma mère (Fayard)

In 2012, in the novel category, to  Avraham Yehoshua, Rétrospective (Grasset/Calmann-Lévy) and, in the essay category to David Van Reybrouck, Congo. Une histoire (Actes Sud)

In 2011, in the novel category, to  Alessandro Piperno, Persécution (Liana Levi) and, in the essay category to Marina Tsvetaïeva, Récits et Essais (tome 2) (Seuil)