Claire Etcherelli

Claire Etcherelli (11 January 1934 – 5 March 2023) was a French novelist. She won the Prix Femina for her 1967 debut novel, Elise or the Real Life, which was also adapted into a 1970 film. Her main characters are women and the plots take place in real-life cities such as Paris. She was influenced by Honoré de Balzac.

Early life Claire Etcherelli was born in 1934 in Bordeaux. The novel gained a cult following during the 1960s and 1970s.

Etcherelli's second novel, A Propos de Clémence (About Clémence) (1971), is about "the difficulty of knowing oneself and the impossibility of knowing another person". Her third novel, Un Arbre voyageur (A Travelling Tree) (1978), focuses on two women who attempt to start an unconventional family that has no patriarch. The family was to be based on trust, solidarity, and women's leadership.

Writing style Etcherelli's main characters are women from a working-class background. She cites Honoré de Balzac as a major influence on her work.

Personal life and death Etcherelli was the mother of two sons.