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Description
MARAN (René).
Batouala. A true African novel.
Paris: Albin Michel, [1921]. — 16mo, 182 x 114: 189 pp., (1 f.), printed cover. Dark brown half-maroquin with corner pieces, ribbed spine, gilt head, untrimmed, cover and spine preserved, slipcase (Devauchelle).
First edition of this major and historic novel.
With *Batouala*, René Maran (1887–1960) has produced a powerful and socially conscious work, unflinchingly denouncing the horrors of colonialism through the story of Batouala, an African chief who symbolises resistance and dignity in the face of oppression. In his preface, the author presents his novel as a series of etchings, the result of six years’ work to faithfully recreate what he saw and heard in Equatorial Africa. He emphasises that he has set aside his own reflections in order to make way for the raw reality of Africans, all too often silenced and scorned by the colonists.
Having become a veritable literary manifesto against colonial injustice, the book was awarded the Prix Goncourt in the year of its publication.
One of the first 30 copies printed on pure-fibre laid paper from Papeteries Lafuma (no. 27).
A precious copy, containing 15 handwritten corrections by the author.
It comes from the library of the poet and essayist Jean Loisy (1901–1992), who added this note on the inside cover: ‘In 1921, from the depths of Africa, the author was unable to review the proofs of his book. René Maran was kind enough to proofread (very meticulously) the text of this copy on large-format paper. The following pages: 20, 24, 26, 32, 35, 40, 41, 50, 82, 93, 99, 100, 130, 153 and 166 therefore bear his handwritten corrections.”
The copy is also enriched by the following items:
- a signed autograph poem on the half-title page, serving as a dedication, entitled: ‘Fable express’.
- An autograph manuscript written in ink, mounted at the top, of a text composed in the early 2010s, 3/4 of an in-4 page, enriched with this autograph note in pencil added 40 years later: ‘The pages above are taken from a rather long short story, *Djogoni*, written in French Equatorial Africa between 1910 and 1912, several pages of which were later included, some in *Batouala*—in particular the description of the tornado—and others, such as this one, in *Un Homme Pareil aux Autres*. Paris, 26 December 1953. René Maran.”
- Photographic portrait of René Maran.
A very fine copy.
Provenance:
Jean Loisy.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
About the sale
Claude Mozis Library – Black Africa and the African diaspora
Auction location
Auction time
10/21/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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