What do you think?
Rate this book
Le Grain magique
Le Grain Magique Contes, Poèmes, et Proverbes Berbères de Kabylie was written by Taos Amrouche, published by La Découverte/ Maspero and was printed in 1966 in a Paperback binding.
Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
3 people are currently reading
83 people want to read
About the author
Marguerite Taos Amrouche
11 books13 followersMarguerite Taos Amrouche (1913-1976) was the first French-speaking Algerian novelist. Sister of the poet Jean Amrouche, like him she was trained in the dual Berber and French culture. Friend of Gide and Giono, admired by André Breton, she leaves a work that rises like a captivating song. In her four autobiographical novels (published by Éditions Joëlle Losfeld), she analyzes her uprooting, exile, solitude, and expresses the need for emancipation of women stifled by tradition.
In 1947, she became the first Algerian woman to publish a novel.She was born to a family of Kabyle Roman Catholic converts, the only daughter in a family of six sons.Her family had moved to Tunisia to escape persecution after their conversion.
Her mother Fadhma Aït Mansour, who was a famous Kabyle singer,had a great impact on her life, and her literary style would reflect the oral traditions of the Kabylie Berber people of her mother's heritage. Amrouche received her elementary and secondary education in Tunis, and in 1935 went to France for studies at the École Normale at Sèvres.From 1936, in collaboration with her elder brother Jean Amrouche and her mother, Amrouche collected and began to interpret Kabyle songs. In 1939, at the Congrès de Chant de Fès, she received a scholarship to study at the Casa Velasquez in Spain, where she researched the ties between Berber and Spanish popular songs.
Her autobiographical first novel, Jacinthe noir, was published in 1947 and is one of the earliest ever published in French by a North African woman writer. With her compilation of tales and poems La Grain magique in 1966, she took the nom de plume Marguerite-Taos, Marguerite being her mother's Christian name.
While she wrote in French, she sang in Kabyle. Her first album Chants berbères de Kabylie (1967), which was a great success, was a collection of traditional Kabyle songs that had been translated into French by her brother Jean. She recorded several other albums, including Chants sauvés de l’oubli (“Songs Saved from Oblivion”), Hommage au chant profond (“Homage to a Profound Song”), Incantations, méditations et danses sacrées berbères (1974), and Chants berbères de la meule et du berceau (1975).[1]
She was an activist in Berber issues and was among the founders of Académie berbère in 1966.
She died in Saint-Michel-l'Observatoire in France.
In 1947, she became the first Algerian woman to publish a novel.She was born to a family of Kabyle Roman Catholic converts, the only daughter in a family of six sons.Her family had moved to Tunisia to escape persecution after their conversion.
Her mother Fadhma Aït Mansour, who was a famous Kabyle singer,had a great impact on her life, and her literary style would reflect the oral traditions of the Kabylie Berber people of her mother's heritage. Amrouche received her elementary and secondary education in Tunis, and in 1935 went to France for studies at the École Normale at Sèvres.From 1936, in collaboration with her elder brother Jean Amrouche and her mother, Amrouche collected and began to interpret Kabyle songs. In 1939, at the Congrès de Chant de Fès, she received a scholarship to study at the Casa Velasquez in Spain, where she researched the ties between Berber and Spanish popular songs.
Her autobiographical first novel, Jacinthe noir, was published in 1947 and is one of the earliest ever published in French by a North African woman writer. With her compilation of tales and poems La Grain magique in 1966, she took the nom de plume Marguerite-Taos, Marguerite being her mother's Christian name.
While she wrote in French, she sang in Kabyle. Her first album Chants berbères de Kabylie (1967), which was a great success, was a collection of traditional Kabyle songs that had been translated into French by her brother Jean. She recorded several other albums, including Chants sauvés de l’oubli (“Songs Saved from Oblivion”), Hommage au chant profond (“Homage to a Profound Song”), Incantations, méditations et danses sacrées berbères (1974), and Chants berbères de la meule et du berceau (1975).[1]
She was an activist in Berber issues and was among the founders of Académie berbère in 1966.
She died in Saint-Michel-l'Observatoire in France.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 30, 2023
C’est une lecture enrichissante qui permet d’élargir ses horizons et de découvrir le paysage culturel kabyle mais je n’ai personnellement pas été touché par les poèmes, dictons et chansons. Les contes sont bien plus intéressants et habités par des personnages dont on ressent l’importance mais il faut être préparé à des morales aux valeurs qui paraissent dépassées pour le lecteur moderne.
Read
June 24, 2024Intéressant (/choquant) de voir à quel point ces contes sont marqués par un violent racisme anti-noir. La morale des trois premiers contes (et bien d'autres après) se résume par "Ne fais pas x, tu deviendras noir et laid"
October 5, 2013
Chef d'oeuvre!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews