French journalist and “La cache” author to speak as Poynter Fellow

French journalist Christophe Boltanski, author of the prize-winning novel “La cache,” will speak at Yale on Tuesday, Sept. 27, as a Poynter Fellow in Journalism.

“A Conversation with Christophe Boltanski” will take place at 4 p.m. in Rm. 208 at the Whitney Humanities Center, 53 Wall St. This event is free and open to the public.

Boltanski, who has previously written and edited for Libérationand L’Observateur — including nine years as a correspondent in Jerusalem and London for Libération — has recently published his first novel. “La cache” is a literary mystery, telling the story of one bohemian Parisian family. As the story unfolds, readers witness scenes in each room of the family’s mansion, eventually coming upon “la cache,” and the secrets inside it.

The novel was inspired by Boltanski’s own family — which, unbeknownst to Boltanski — hid his grandfather in the family attic for two years during the Nazi occupation of France.

Boltanski will be joined by Laura Marris, a Yale College graduate and the translator of “La cache.” The talk is co-sponsored by the Department of French, the Yale Center for the Study of Antisemitism, and the Whitney Humanities Center.

The Poynter Fellowship in Journalism was established by Nelson Poynter, who received his master’s degree in 1927 from Yale. The fellowship brings to campus journalists from a wide variety of media outlets who have made significant contributions to their field.

Among recent fellows are Chris Arnold, Joan Biskupic, and Eliza Griswold.