Jules Renard

popular name: Jean Giono

date_of_death: October 8, 1970

age: 75

cause_of_death: Heart attack

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: Jean Giono was a French writer who spent his entire life living and writing in Manosque, France. It was here that the author created his monumental oeuvre, inspired by the sun-drenched footpaths and unbridled natural scenery that was his home. Following in his footsteps visitors will cross the landscapes he described so vividly, from Gréoux-les-Bains to Forcalquier where his work A King Alone was born. Among his novels, the most famous are “Colline” (“The Hill”) of 1929, “Regain” (“Re covety”) of 1930, “Le Chant du Monde” (“Song of the World”) of 1934, “Que Ma Joie De meure” (“Let My Joy Remain”) of 1935, “L'Eau Vive” (“Lively Water”) of 1944, “Les Ames Mortes” (“The Dead Souls”) of 1949, “Le Hussard sur le Toit” (“The Hussard on the Roof”) of 1951 and “Le Moulin de Po logne” (“The Polish Mill”) 1952. Outside France, Giono's best-known work is probably the short story The Man who Planted Trees (and 1987 film version). This optimistic tale of a man who brings a deserted valley back to life by planting trees reflects Giono's long-standing love of the natural world, an attitude that made him a precursor to the modern ecological movement. In his later years, Giono was honoured with the Prince Rainier of Monaco literary prize in 1953, awarded for his lifetime achievements, was elected to the Académie Goncourt in 1954, and became a member of the Conseil Littéraire of Monaco in 1963.

popular name: C. S. Forester

date_of_death: April 2, 1966

age: 66

cause_of_death: Decline from heart attack and stroke

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: C.S. Forester is best known for his Horatio Hornblower series, 12 novels set during the Napoleonic Wars that track the adventures and the growth of a young Englishman in the Royal Navy. By 1937, he was well on the way to success with the publication of his first novel in the series. Another of his best-known works, The African Queen, was one of the many of his works that inspired screenplays—for both movies on the big screen and for television—that included some based on the Hornblower novels. Forester also wrote plays and children’s books, and, early in his career, he made contributions to the emerging genre of crime fiction. His masterpiece of suspense, Payment Deferred, foreshadowed the works of later practitioners of mystery fiction. Five biographies, some histories, and an early autobiography were also part of his varied output.

popular name: Louis Aragon

date_of_death: December 24, 1982

age: 85

cause_of_death: Natural causes

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: Louis Aragon was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review Littérature. He was also a novelist and editor, a long-time member of the Communist Party and a member of the Académie Goncourt. After 1959, he was a frequent nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature. 'Elsa's Eyes', the poem to his Russian-born wife, Elsa Triolet, who died in 1970, stood as one of his most memorable pieces along with 'The Peasant in Paris,' 'Crazy About Elsa,' 'Put to Death' and 'Holy Week.'