Francofest2025 / Newmag presents Nicolas Mathieu’s masterpiece “And Their Children After Them” (trailer)

As Le Petit Littéraire wrote, “It’s a story about ordinary people: some silently reconcile with fate, while others dare to dream of freedom.”

Through this novel, Mathieu shows how one small youthful decision can become the starting point of a lifelong drama.

The Berlin Wall had already fallen, but children deprived of their dreams were still listening to Nirvana, riding mopeds, smoking weed, and dreaming about love. They watched Santa Barbara, longed to wear Adidas and Nike, but wore fake Ray-Bans instead. There would be no revolution—only noise. Rock spread like a virus, hair grew longer, boredom turned into fury, and depression into decibels.

Mathieu’s prose is sharp social realism, filled with political undertones. Life unfolds between memory and decline, politeness and rage. The psychological depth of individual destinies blends with the collective story of disappointment, routine, and broken promises.

The novel “And Their Children After Them” received the 2018 Prix Goncourt, France’s most prestigious literary award. Its English edition won the Albertine Prize, and the book has been translated into over 20 languages. In 2024, the novel was adapted into a feature film of the same name, premiered at the Venice International Film Festival.

Today, the book is part of the French high school curriculum, regarded as one of the best literary lessons on social inequality and adolescence.

Nicolas Mathieu is one of the most powerful voices in contemporary European literature. He grew up in the working-class village of Ménil-sur-Belvedere, deeply marked by the industrial crisis of the 1990s. From a young age, he became aware of social divides that would later shape his writing. A graduate in history and cinema from the University of Metz, Mathieu worked in public administration, media, and screenwriting—always writing “in secret.”

The Armenian translation of the book is by Lilit Bleyan, with Cinema Star Armenia as the general partner. The presentation of “And Their Children After Them” will take place on November 15 at 6:00 PM at the Congress Hotel, as part of the International French Book Festival. Admission is free, and special festival discounts will be available on the book.