Paula Jacques

In 1961, Jacques and her family left Israel for France. Jacques' novels focus exclusively on the Jews of Egypt, mainly during the 1940s and 1950s. Her novels can be described as reflecting the postcolonial condition. In the novels, both Egyptian Jews and Muslims interact in day-to-day activities. In a few novels, like Gilda Stambouli souffre et se plaint (2002)and Un Baiser froid comme la lune (1983), Jacques takes her characters from Egypt to France and Israel where they face issues of acculturation. The characters' relationship with the French language and culture is problematized and so is their relationship to Israel. Jacques's characters confront hostility, humiliation, conflicted ideologies, political instability, and cultural alienation. The novels explore the conditions under which Jews lived in Egypt in the years and days before their peremptory expulsion; the most developed cases are Lumière de l'oeil, L'Héritage de la tante Carlotta, Les Femmes avec leur amour, and the tragic La Descente au paradis. In her novels, Jacques describes the suffering and humiliation experienced by both Jews and Muslims and shows both perspectives. Alongside her novelistic production, Jacques has been involved in French theatre, radio, and the press. Jacques is the winner of the Prix Femina, 1991, for Deborah et les anges dissipés.

• Name — Paula Jacques • Birth Name — Paula Abadi • Birthplace — Cairo, Egypt • Language — French • Notable Works — Deborah et les anges dissipés • Awards — Prix Femina