Five prestigious literary awards have been distributed (Grand Prix du roman of the French Academy, Femina, Médicis, Goncourt and Renaudot), before the presentation next week of the Prix Interallié and the «Goncourt des lycéens», but we can already draw up a first balance sheet.

1 ● The triumph of Actes sud

If Françoise Nyssen is, perhaps, not happy of his experience as minister of Culture (fourteen months challenging the rue de Valois), it should be to the angels of recent years past at the head of Actes sud. His publishing house has triumphed with five Goncourt in fourteen years, with a surprising doubled 2017-2018.

Laurent Gaudé had opened the market in 2004, with The Sun of Scorta ; followed in 2012 by Jérôme Ferrari and his Sermon on the fall of Rome ; Mathias Enard is awarded in 2015, with Compass . Then Eric Vuillard wins last year with The Order of the day before the consecration of the young Nicolas Mathieu on Wednesday. Since 2004, no publishing house has done better than Acts south. Neither Gallimard (four times the Goncourt), or Stifle (once), or The Threshold (a time). Is it still necessary to speak of GalliGrasSeuil?

2 ● ● ● ● ● surprise Valerie Mantle

With the jury Renaudot you could expect everything from the moment Philippe Lançon was awarded the Prix Femina. «We had our coup de theatre!» shouted one of the ten jurors met for a few moments after the proclamation of the price. The coup de théâtre has name Valerie Mantle, author of the Furrow published in a small publishing house, The Tripod. Valerie Mantle was not included in the final selection (it was mentioned in the first). The coup de théâtre has surprised even the winner who, until not, had remained at Marseille, where she works at the Mucem. With this strong gesture, the Renaudot to distinguish a beautiful novel, and applaud the work of a small publishing house, which is just a simple rare.

» READ ALSO – Valerie Mantle, winner of the Renaudot 2018 for Sulcus

3 ● David Diop. It is not good to be the favorite

David Diop, with «soul Brother» (Threshold). JOEL SAGET/AFP

David Diop, with soul Brother (Threshold), the critically acclaimed a good position in the top sales with its subject on the senegalese riflemen in the year of the commemoration of the centenary of the Armistice, was on ALL lists of great price fall, absolutely all. He predicted the Goncourt and the Renaudot, he was in the final of Femina and Medicis… It nothing happened. Each time, he was preferred to a(e) other. It is still in the running for the Goncourt des lycéens, which would be more than a consolation prize. It is no longer one of the contenders for the Allied.

4 ● tripled éditions Stock

the Renaudot literary Prize of the essay: Olivia de Lamberterie, with All my sympathies . Prix Femina of the trial: Elisabeth de Fontenay, with Gaspard of the night . Médicis prize of the novel alien: Rachel Kushner for The March Club , translated from the English by Sylvie Schneiter. The common point of these three winners? They are published by the house of Stock. Headed by Manuel Carcassonne, it achieves a tripled unpublished. It would be necessary to dig into the archives of literary awards in order to observe such a feat.

5 ● The breakthrough of editions Plon

He climbed slowly power: Camille Pascal, with The summer of the four kings , published by editions Plon. It was not a favorite, initially. There was the beau monde: Alain Mabanckou, Gilles Martin-Chauffier, Agnès Desarthe, Thomas B Reverdy…

forecasters do not lend themselves necessarily attention to Camille Pascal, for whom this was the first novel – this former pen of Nicolas Sarkozy had written essays and great chronic Scenes of the daily life of the Elysium .

» READ ALSO – Camille Pascal, winner of the Grand Prix du roman of the French Academy

the First surprise: none of the editions Gallimard did not appear on this list: not Éric Fottorino and his wonderful seventeen , nor of Paul Greveilac, with his Master and slave , the critically admired the classic style, not Laurence Cossé no more book Night on the snow was built for the French Academy ; and Philippe Lançon, who seemed to be unavoidable with Flap . The place was so – almost – free. Camille Pascal and his publisher believed in it strong. They have been right. Plon had not had a Grand Prize of the French Academy since 1960.