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Louise de Brisson, winner of the Pierre-François Caillé Translation Prize 2025
Louise de Brisson is a literary translator from Latvian and a lecturer at the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (Inalco), Paris.
She developed an early passion for Latvian culture and language, which she began studying at Inalco. She continued to cultivate this interest while pursuing her career in the field of human rights, then decided to turn to translation. She is currently completing the master's degree in literary translation at Inalco.
In 2022, she began teaching Latvian version in the bachelor's degree program at Inalco, and from January 2024, she will be teaching Latvian literature and culture there.
La Rivière is the first novel Louise de Brisson has signed up to translate.
Founded in 1981 by the Société française des traducteurs (SFT) with the support of the École supérieure d'interprètes et de traducteurs (ESIT), the prix Pierre-François Caillé de la traduction is awarded each year to a translator new to publishing. Its aim is to encourage young talent and highlight the essential role of translation in providing access to world literature.
The jury praised Louise de Brisson's work for:
the fluidity of her language, her fidelity to the poetic sobriety of the original, her ability to restore the intimate atmosphere of the text, a French translation that "flows like a river", natural, uncluttered, without ever betraying the author.
French Society of Translators (SFT)
Ten years after her sister's disappearance and still haunted by memories of her unhappy childhood, Ruta flees - from a comfortable life, the city, her job, her husband and above all herself - to the house she inherited from her father.
She discovers the secrets of the man she never knew, learns to live simply, and forges bonds with her neighbors. Will she come to understand her past and appreciate her present?
Written in deliberately simple language, this novel tackles complex issues: the quest for one's place and fulfillment in life. It's a universal tale of self-acceptance and acceptance of others.