Pierre Autin-Grenier (; 4 April 1947 – 12 April 2014) was a French author. The catalogue of the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The Bibliothèque nationale de France (, 'National Library of France'; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository ...

gives his date of birth as 1947, though later dates ranging through to 1953 are quoted on various web pages including at least one contributed by the author. All sources agree, however, that he was born in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and the only day quoted is 4 April. He is associated with the movement sometimes referred to as the extrême contemporain, and his work is experimental rather than conventional. Radicalised by the events of May 1968 in France, his political position is close to

anarchism Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessa ...

and much of his writing is anti-

capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, priva ...

and anti-

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

. His recent work, ''Friterie-bar Brunetti'', is a collection of pieces about the habitués of the former Lyons bar of that name, with an undercurrent of opposition to the multinational chain cafés that are replacing such indigenous establishments, and the increasing atmosphere of regulation that undermines their atmosphere. Autin-Grenier writes mainly short pieces, some short stories, some

prose poem Prose poetry is poetry written in prose form instead of verse form, while preserving poetic qualities such as heightened imagery, parataxis, and emotional effects. Characteristics Prose poetry is written as prose, without the line breaks associat ...

s, and many of the short narrative pieces referred to in French literature as Récits. He has also been involved in a ''roman collectif'' (''13, Quai de la Pécheresse, 69000 Lyon''), a complete novel whose 13 chapters were each contributed by a different author. He has regularly published collections of his short pieces, and three of his collections of récits (''Je ne suis pas un héros'', ''Toute une vie bien ratée'' and ''L'éternité est inutile'') form a kind of trilogy, under the collective title ''Une histoire''. Because much of his work consists of short pieces, it is suitable for publication on the internet and several examples can be found online. his work has not appeared in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. Autin-Grenier died in Lyon on 12 April 2014.Mort de Pierre Autin-Grenier, écrivain des "riens du tout"

Bibliography

(incomplete) * ''Jours anciens'' (L'Arbre, 1980) * ''Histoires secrètes'' (L.-O.Four, 1982 / La Dragonne, 2000) * ''L'ange au gilet rouge'' (Syros, 1990 / Gallimard-L'Arpenteur, 2007), short stories * ''Chronique des faits'' (L'Arbre, 1992) * ''Impressions de Lozère: La Margeride'' (Les Presses du Languedoc, 1992) * ''Je ne suis pas un héros'' (Gallimard-L'Arpenteur, 1993 / Folio, 2003), récits * ''Légende de Zakhor'' (L'Arbre à paroles, 1996 / Éditions en Forêt, 2002) * ''Toute une vie bien ratée'' (Gallimard-L'Arpenteur, 1997 / Folio, 1999), récits * ''13, Quai de la Pécheresse'', 69000 Lyon (1999), collective novel * ''L'éternité est inutile'' (Gallimard-L'Arpenteur, 2002), récits * ''Les radis bleus'' (Le Dé bleu, 1991/ Gallimard-Folio, 2005) * ''La-Haut'' (Éditions du Chemin de Fer, 2005) * ''Friterie-bar Brunetti'' (Gallimard-L'Arpenteur, 2005) * ''Un cri'' (Cadex, 2006) * ''Élodie Cordou, la disparition'' (Éditions du Chemin de Fer, 2010) * ''C'est tous les jours comme ça'' (Éditions Finitude, 2010)

References

External links

reading from ''L'éternité est inutile''
Bibliography contributed by the author, with links to some works available on the internet
*Reviews of some of Autin-Grenier's works at www.sitartmag.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Autin-Grenier, Pierre 1947 births 2014 deaths 20th-century French non-fiction writers 20th-century French male writers Writers from Lyon French male short story writers French short story writers 20th-century short story writers