Charles Aznavour’s 99th Birthday
This Monday, Charles Aznavour would have been 99 years old. To pay tribute to him, his son Mischa was organizing the first edition of the Aznavour Words of Love Literary Prize in Paris. The jury members then posed with the author Perrine Tripier, rewarded for her work Les guerres précieuses (Gallimard).
The Variety of Subjects and Styles
The selection of this first edition was distinguished by the great variety of subjects and styles, passed through the prism of love. The works that were retained are a reflection of a deep questioning of love subjects. They evoke the need to decipher our impulses, to explain our behaviors and to analyze the codes that govern our love relationships, whatever they may be. A very interesting project, which Charles Aznavour would have been ‘proud of’, explained Mischa a few days ago.
Charles Aznavour’s Complexion
In a lovely flowery jacket matched with his shoes and combined with a black v-neck t-shirt and beige chino, the 52-year-old novelist was surrounded by many stars including André Manoukian and Ségolène Royal, who composed the jury. An interview he had given in the context of the establishment of this first edition revealed why Charles Aznavour was ‘proud’ of this project: ‘He never felt legitimate in the world of writing, even if he created songs. He had stopped school at 9 years old. Autodidact, he made a lot of spelling mistakes. He was proud to have gotten there with so little school baggage, but it always a bit complexed him’.
