Amaury Da Cunha explores phone and voice obsession in 'Touche Fantôme'

In his novel 'Touche Fantôme', French journalist, photographer, and writer Amaury Da Cunha (born 1976 in Paris) recounts his ambiguous relationship with his mobile phone and his obsession with voices, which he calls 'the most intimate signature of the soul'. The book traces back to a chilling phone call in July 2009 when he learned of his brother's suicide, a call that upended his life. Da Cunha, a journalist for Le Monde des Livres, published the novel with Éditions de l'Iconoclaste. The interview aired on RFI's program 'De Vive(s) Voix' on May 20, 2026. The episode also featured Lucie Bouteloup's regular segment 'La puce à l'oreille', which decoded the French expression 'Arrête ton char(re) !' with the help of CM2B students from École Arago in Paris's 13th arrondissement. Musical programming included the track 'Orage' by artist Aure.