Michel Houellebecq

Michel Houellebecq (French pronunciation: [miʃɛl wɛlbɛk]; born Michel Thomas on 26 February 1956) is a French author of novels, poems, and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker, and singer. His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. Houellebecq published his first novel, Whatever, in 1994 and his next novel, Atomised in 1998, which brought him international fame as well as controversy. He has published several books of poetry, including The Art of Struggle in 1996.

An offhand remark about Islam during a publicity tour for his 2001 novel Platform led to Houellebecq being taken to court for inciting racial hatred. He was eventually cleared of all charges. He subsequently moved to Ireland for several years, before moving back to France. In 2010, he published The Map and the Territory, which won the prestigious Prix Goncourt. In 2015, his novel, Submission, sparked controversy for its depiction of Islam and was later accused of plagiarism. Annihilation was published in 2022. He was described in 2015 as "France's biggest literary export and, some say, greatest living writer" and called himself "probably islamophobic". In a 2017 Deutsche Welle article, he is dubbed the "undisputed star, and enfant terrible, of modern French literature".

Early life and education

Houellebecq was born Michel Thomas on the French island of Réunion in 1956. His mother Lucie Ceccaldi was a French physician of Corsican descent, born in Algeria, his father René Thomas was a ski instructor and mountain guide. Houellebecq's official date of birth is 26 February 1956, although he has sometimes stated that he may have actually been born in 1958.