Philippe Besson (born 29 January 1967) is a French writer, playwright and screenwriter. Besson was born in Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, Charente, and has written a total of 23 novels, several of which have been adapted for cinema or theater.

Life

Besson grew up the child of schoolteacher father and a notary clerk mother. Besson was often mocked by his classmates because of his appearance, his clothes and his manners. During his final school year, he fell in love with a peasant's son in his village in Charente, but they were forced to hide their relationship. Besson attended l'École supérieure de commerce de Rouen, now called Neoma Business School. In 1999, Besson, a law graduate, was inspired to write his first novel, En l'absence des hommes, while reading of accounts of ex-servicemen during the First World War. The novel won the Prix Emmanuel Roblès. Besson's second novel, Son Frère was shortlisted for the Prix Femina, and adapted for cinema by Patrice Chéreau in 2003. The film was well received and won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. Besson's novel Arrête avec tes mensonges (published in English under the title Lie with Me) received critical acclaim, became a bestseller in France, and won several awards including the Prix Maison de la Presse and Prix Psychologies du roman inspirant. The book was adapted in 2022 into a movie of the same name, which premiered in the Angoulême Francophone Film Festival on August 27, 2022. The novel was also adapted into a play performed in January 2023 at the Théâtre de la Tempête in Paris.

Major works