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Hello, Collette 1873 to 1954

was one of the outstanding French writers of the 20th century,

and uniquely, her novels always had women

at their center from youth to midlife to old age.

They were phenomenally popular at first

for their freshness and frankness about women's lives

as in the Claudine stories, but soon also

for the sheer quality she developed as a writer.

And throughout, she's intrigued read

as by inserting herself or a character with her name

into the works, fictionalizing her life

as a way to share her insights into the human experience.

When we discuss Collette Ahm, Downer Holmes,

Professor of French Literature at the University of Leeds,

Michelle Roberts, writer, noblist, poet,

and emeritus, Professor of Creative Writing

...