Marcel Aymé
(1902-1967)
French writer

Marcel Aymé was born in Joigny in 1902. After having spent his childhood in the country, he came to Paris in 1925. After his arrival, he had several jobs, including one as a journalist. After the success of his novel, The Green Mare (La jument verte), a dark satire about   sexuality published  in 1933, he  dedicated himself entirely to literature. As a portrayal of manners, tasteful and often satiric, Marcel Aymé's work is often  described as a disillusioned look at a mediocre world. This soft pessimism can be seen in Travelingue (1941), and above all in Uranus (1948) and The Wine of Paris (1947), which are ironical depictions of the period of German occupation and Liberation. To fight against a boring modern world, Marcel Aymé uses fantasy : picturesque and funny characters (The Clandestine Beef , Le boeuf clandestin, 1939), or familiar relationships between realism and imagination (The Sorceress, La Vouivre, 1943). His love of  popular language, whether from Paris or from the country, and his ability as a storyteller, make him one of the most original writers of his time. A fantastic realism prevails in The Man who Walked Through Walls (Le Passe-Muraille, 1943) and the Wonderful farm (Les contes du chat perché, 1934).
Marcel Aymé was also active in the theatre and in movies as a playwright.