Juan Gabriel Vásquez's Novel 'Les noms de Feliza' Shortlisted for Prix Femina étranger 2026

Colombian author Juan Gabriel Vásquez has published a new novel, 'Les noms de Feliza,' with Éditions du Seuil. The book centers on Feliza Bursztyn, a Colombian sculptor whose legacy, according to the source, might have faded without Vásquez's literary intervention. The novel is in contention for the Prix Femina étranger 2026. Born in Colombia, the country named after Christopher Columbus, Vásquez is the son of anglophile lawyers and was shaped by plural cultures. His literary urgency, the source suggests, developed in proportion to the state violence he experienced as an adolescent. His influences span France, Belgium, Spain, Joseph Conrad, Gustave Flaubert, and Emily Dickinson. A former journalist and author of 'La traduction du monde,' he has received numerous awards. The source also notes his tendency to look beyond Latin America, regularly knocking on the doors of elsewhere. The RFI podcast 'En sol majeur' featured a musical program accompanying the episode: 'Las ciudades,' a ranchera by José Alfredo Jiménez performed by María Dolores Pradera, and 'Cambalache' by Enrique Santos Discépolo performed by Joan Manuel Serrat. The episode was published on September 20, 2026, at 07:00.