“Poétique, politique, passionnant” — Le Monde

Historian Claire Zalc presents “Sur les lieux de Georges Perec,” a four-part documentary podcast she created for France Culture that traces chapters in the life of French author Georges Perec. This fascinating historical and literary adventure is told through four places that held special meaning in Perec’s life: la rue Vilin in the Belleville neighborhood of Paris where he grew up; the Moulin d’Andé in Normandy, a literary community where he wrote and fell in love; Ellis Island, associated for him with exile and his Jewish identity; and Lubartów in Poland, the birthplace of his father he barely knew. Zalc’s poignant, expertly researched radio history explores Perec’s life and writings against a larger history of family ties, immigration, and persecution, drawing on archives, oral testimonies, readings, and visits to these special places in Perec’s life.

Zalc will share and discuss several excerpts of “Sur les Lieux de Georges Perec” and reflect on the unique opportunities and challenges of telling history through an aural documentary rather than a book — using words, voices, sounds, and music.

Listen to the Sur les lieux de Georges Perec here

Claire Zalc is also presenting the inaugural Jack Abel Lecture in Antisemitism on Monday, January 27, 2025, at 4:00 PM, titled “Family Separation and Antisemitism: Reconstructing the Migrations of a Jewish Sibling from Poland Across the Early 20th Century.” The lecture is presented by the Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies and can be attended in person at 617 Kent Hall or virtually via Zoom. For more information and to register, please click here.

Both of these events with Claire Zalc events are made possible with the support of the Knapp Family Foundation.

Time: 6:00-7:30 pm EST

Free!

Registration