Novelist, born in Belmont, S France. At first a teacher, he left to become an editor in the administration of the Beaux Arts in the city of Paris. He published some poetry, including De Goupil à Margot, Histoire de Bêtes (1910), the second volume of which won him the Prix Goncourt, but he is best known for the novel La Guerre des Boutons (1912), later filmed. He was killed in action in World War 1.
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Louis Pergaud (January 22, 1882 – April 8, 1915) was a French writer and soldier, whose principal works were known as "Animal Stories" due to their rooting in the flora and fauna of the Franche-Comté. His most famous work was the humorous yet powerful novel La Guerre des boutons (English: "War of the Buttons"), written in 1912.
Works
His first published work appeared in the Mercure de France in 1910, and this was followed by a book of poetry and short stories named De Goupil à Margot the same year, which won the Prix Goncourt.
In 1912 La Guerre des boutons was published, a tale of a play-war between the small boys of two neighbouring villages. Pergaud's works are still enormously popular in France, with the La Guerre des boutons having been reprinted over thirty times.
There is a Paris society especially devoted to him and his works, named Les Amis de Louis Pergaud.
Death
In the ultimate irony for a pacifist, Louis Pergaud was conscripted into the French Army at the outbreak of the First World War, having been placed in the active reserve following his national service twelve years before.
Adaptations of his works
La Guerre des boutons has been twice made in films:
La Guerre des boutons (1962, France) by Yves Robert War of the Buttons (1994, Ireland) by John Roberts
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