Vera Feyder (born 1939) is a Belgian writer and comedian living in France. Her father was a Polish Jew who died while being sent to

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

; her mother was Belgian of Serb descent. She was born in

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

and was educated at the Académie Grétry there. During her youth, she suffered from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

and

anorexia Anorexia nervosa (AN), often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by Calorie restriction, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. Individuals wit ...

, which required long periods of convalescence. At the age of 19, she moved to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. She published her first collection of poems ''Le Temps démuni'' in 1961, which received the Prix "Découverte". Her first novel ''La Derelitta'' received the

Prix Victor-Rossel The Prix Victor-Rossel is a literary award in Belgium that was first awarded in 1938. The award was created by three people associated with the newspaper ''Le Soir'': the owner Marie-Thérèse Rossel, the manager Lucien Fuss and the editor-in-chi ...

; it was adapted into a film in 1981. In 2008, she was awarded the Prix poésie Paul Verlaine de l’Académie française for her work. Feyder wrote scripts for dramas and literary programs for

France Culture France Culture () is a French public radio channel and part of Radio France Radio France () is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist ...

, the

Radio Suisse Romande The Radio Suisse Romande (RSR) was an enterprise unit within public-broadcasting corporation SRG SSR. It was responsible for the production and transmission of French-language radio programmes in Switzerland. RSR's headquarters were situated in ...

and the

RTBF The ("Belgian Radio-television of the French Community"), shortened to RTBF (branded as rtbf.be), is a public broadcasting, public service broadcaster for the French Community of Belgium, French-speaking Community of Belgium. Its counterpart i ...

. In 1985, she was awarded the Prix Radio de la SACD for her work. From 1999 to 2002, Feyder was vice-president of the Commission Radio de la SACD.

Awards

* Prix "Découverte" *

* Prix poésie Paul Verlaine de l’Académie française * Prix Radio de la SACD

Selected works

* ''Un jaspe pour Liza'', novella (1965) * ''Pays l'absence'', poetry (1970), received the Prix François Villon * ''Passionnaire'', poetry (1974), received the

Prix Broquette-Gonin The prix Broquette-Gonin was a former prize awarded by the Académie française. It rewarded four disciplines: history, literature, philosophy and poetry. A separate prize was awarded by subject. Prix Broquette-Gonin (history) The prix Broque ...

awarded by the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

* ''Emballage perdu'', play (1982), translated in English as ''No deposit, no return'' (1986) * ''Le fond de l'être est froid. 1966-1992'', poetry anthology (1995), received the Prix de poésie de la SGDL * ''Petite suite de pertes irréparables'', play (1998) * ''La bouche de l'ogre'', play (2002), received the Prix Littérature Amnesty * ''Piano seul'', play (2003), received the Prix Louis Praga * ''Ô Humanité'', stories (2008)

References

External links

* 1939 births Living people Belgian women novelists Belgian poets in French 20th-century Belgian dramatists and playwrights Belgian women dramatists and playwrights Writers from Liège Writers from Paris 20th-century Belgian novelists 20th-century Belgian poets Belgian radio writers Women radio writers Belgian women poets Belgian women short story writers 20th-century Belgian short story writers Belgian people of Serbian descent Belgian people of Polish-Jewish descent Winners of the Prix Broquette-Gonin (literature) 20th-century Belgian women writers {{Belgium-writer-stub