French Literature Reviews - 2026

B. Galland, Une aventure appelée littérature romande
Francophone and Oral Literatures

Bertil Galland

Une aventure appelée littérature romande

Geneva: Slatkine, "Ecrits de Bertil Galland", 2014

410 p. / 16 X 23 CM

ISBN: 9782051027090

38.00 CHF

Publisher's overview:

Does Romandy literature actually exist? To this question, which was still being asked in the last century, Bertil Galland—embodying the principle of proving motion by walking—has always given a pragmatic answer: for Romandy literature to exist, it must first be published. His early years, rich in formative encounters and friendships, sharpened his keen taste as an avid reader and his infallible literary instinct. Before even turning thirty, alongside Jacques Chessex, he founded the journal Ecriture, which welcomed both established authors and emerging voices from French-speaking Switzerland. Taking over the direction of the Cahiers de la Renaissance vaudoise, until then dedicated to political and historical essays, he began publishing novelists and poets guided solely by the originality and power of their voices—at the risk of a bitter falling-out with Marcel Regamey when he published Chessex’s provocative (to local sensibilities) novel Carabas. Later, under his own imprint and subsequently with Éditions 24 heures, he gathered together a circle founded equally on literary fellowship and friendship, featuring some of the country's sharpest pens. All the while, he never stopped writing about this blossoming of talent, bringing to it the discerning and complicit gaze that is his trademark. In the first part, published here for the first time, Bertil Galland recounts nearly half a century of this literary adventure. Behind the twists, turns, and encounters, the intellectual and moral climate of an era emerges, alongside a profound reflection on the profession of publishing—one he always practiced independently, driven by a deep-seated aversion to ideological barriers and bureaucratic red tape. In the second part, the author revisits and updates portraits of the writers closest to him, originally published in the press or in his previous works. Readers will rediscover, in chapters remarkable for their fraternal sensitivity, profiles of Chappaz, Chessex, Bouvier, Borgeaud, Pestelli, Mercanton, Debluë, major female literary voices—Corinna Bille, Anne-Lise Grobéty, Ella Maillart, Alice Rivaz—as well as writers from the Jura region such as Cuttat, Voisard, and Walzer. Along the way, we encounter towering tutelary figures, literary elders and outcasts, recluses and seasoned travelers, all driven by the obsessive need to decipher life through writing. It is a testament to an abundance of talent and projects proving that the spiritual geography of a territory can far transcend its physical boundaries.

The volume presents perspectives on the literary life of French-speaking Switzerland through the experiences of a publisher and writer. It traces the creation of journals and publishing ventures, the support given to established and emerging authors, and the personal friendships that shaped the region's cultural landscape. Alongside these editorial recollections, the work presents portraits of numerous writers, highlighting figures who have contributed to the vitality of Romandy literature over several decades.

Readers interested in the history of publishing and regional literature in Switzerland may find this book relevant. The text combines autobiographical narrative with critical reflection on the profession of editing and the cultural identity of a territory defined by its linguistic and spiritual horizons.