Simon, Claude

Claude Simon was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1985. Born in Madagascar in 1913, he grew up in Perpignan, France, and after leaving school traveled extensively throughout Europe. At the beginning of World War II he was captured by the Germans at the Battle of the Meuse but escaped and joined the resistance movement. He published his first novel, The Cheat, in 1946. His many works include The Wind, The Georgics, and The Invitation.