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Event 60: Mathias Enard in conversation with Helena de Bertodano
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Back to HAY FESTIVAL SEGOVIA 2026
Sun, Sep 13, 2026
1:30 PM – 2:20 PM (GMT+2)
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Cities and journeys marked by the traces of the past and the persistence of memory are central themes in Mathias Enard’s work, including Melancholy of the Borders: North, where memoir, travel writing, and literary essay come together.
Throughout his writing, Enard explores not only physical landscapes but also moral and emotional territories, shaping geographical, human, and literary borders. His latest work, the first part of a quartet dedicated to the cardinal points, serves as the starting point for a conversation with journalist Helena de Bertodano, known for her interviews and profiles of prominent cultural figures.
The event will be presented by Zélie Perpignaa, specialist in cultural mediation and Attaché for Books, Public Debate and Media Libraries at the Institut Français of Spain.
At the end of the event, the author will sign copies of his books.
Event in Spanish.
Speakers
Zélie Perpignaa
Publisher
https://www.linkedin.com/in/z%C3%A9lie-perpignaa/
Zélie Perpignaa is the attaché for Books, Intellectual Exchange, and Media Libraries at the Institut Français in Spain. She previously worked in the publishing industry as a press officer at Calmann-Lévy, having gained experience at the publishing house Grasset, as well as in New York at the Villa Albertine. She specializes in book promotion and cultural mediation.
Mathias Enard
Writer and Translator
Mathias Enard studied Arabic and Persian and spent long periods in the Middle East before settling in Barcelona in 2000. He has been awarded, amongst others, the Prix de la Francophonie (2003) for his first novel The Perfection of the Shot; the Prix Décembre (2008) and the Prix du Livre Inter (2009) for Zone; the Prix Goncourt des Étudiants (2010) for Tell Them of Battles, Kings and Elephants; the Goncourt Prize (2015) for Compass; and the Joseph Kessel Prize (2025) for Melancholy of the Confines: North. He has also been awarded the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture (2016) and the Albert Camus Prize (2022) for his body of work. He was writer-in-residence at the Prado Museum in 2025. He is currently a member of the German Academy for Language and Literature. His most recent novels include The Annual Banquet of the Gravediggers’ Guild and Deserting, which was shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize. Melancholy of the Boundaries: North is his first work of non-fiction.
Helena de Bertodano
Journalist
Helena de Bertodano, a journalist specialising in interviews and profiles of celebrities for publications such as The Times, The Telegraph and The Observer. She has interviewed more than 1,000 people over the last 25 years, including many key figures in contemporary literature, such as Umberto Eco, Kurt Vonnegut, Isabel Allende, Doris Lessing, Don DeLillo, Joan Didion, JK Rowling, Paul Auster and Mario Vargas Llosa.