French Literature Reviews - 2026

C. Aurouet, M. Simon-Oikawa (eds.), Jacques Prévert, Poetic Detonations
Poetry and Poetics

Review published in Acta Fabula (March 2020, vol. 21, no. 3): Rafael da Cruz Ireno, "Crafting the Poetic: The Work of Jacques Prévert"

Jacques Prévert, Poetic Detonations,

edited by Carole Aurouet and Marianne Simon-Oikawa,

Les Colloques de Cerisy series,

Classiques Garnier, 2019, 356 p., ISBN 978-2-406-08376-4

Contents

Carole Aurouet and Marianne Simon-Oikawa. Jacques Prévert, "like a grenade hurled into reality"

Patrice Allain and Laurence Perrigault. Thinking Prévert through the Works of Lou Tchimoukow and Fabien Loris

Carole Aurouet. The Committed Writings of Jacques Prévert: Appeals, Articles, Pamphlets, Protests, and Tracts

Akira Ise. The Reception of Jacques Prévert in the Land of the Rising Sun: From Japanese Theater to Animated Film

Roland Carrée. Prévert and Animated Cinema: Inspirations, Poetics, and Extensions

Laurent Véray. Is There a Prévert Documentary Style?

Béatrice de Pastre. What the Potato Means: Towards an Illustrated Handbook of Political Economy

Noël Herpe. Prévert as Dialogue Writer, or the Voice of Others

Carole Aurouet. Jacques Prévert's Invisible Cinema Revealed: New Discoveries of Diverted Screenplays

Serge Martin. The Organic Engagement of Storytelling in Jacques Prévert's "Words"

Fabrice Thumerel. At Prévert's Feast

Francis Marcoin. Prévert, Crosse en l'air, Crossover

Alain Keit. A History of Fallen Leaves

Marianne Simon-Oikawa. Jacques Prévert as Collagist, or the Image in All Its States

Christian Lebrat. Jacques Prévert and the Art Book

Dominique Versavel. Prévert, Photographers, and Photography: History of a Paradox

Carole Aurouet and Marianne Simon-Oikawa. Conclusion

Jacques Prévert by Jean Queval: Unpublished Notes

Bio-bibliographical Milestones

Filmography

Index

Abstracts

This collection emerges from scholarship exploring the multifaceted dimensions of modern French poetry and its intersections with media, politics, and the visual arts. Throughout the twentieth century, writers and artists frequently worked across traditional boundaries, combining verse, performance, and visual practices to engage with contemporary public life. Edited volumes focusing on individual figures often map these intermedial networks, bringing together various critical perspectives to examine how a major author's output resonates within broader cultural and historical currents.

Readers interested in modern French poetry, cinematic history, and avant-garde art may find this volume relevant to their studies. The contributions gathered here touch upon Jacques Prévert's writings, his cinematic collaborations, and his visual work, placing his creative output within the wider context of twentieth-century French literature and artistic expression. Scholars examining the relationships between poetry, film, and politics in France will encounter detailed examinations of these enduring aesthetic practices.