The Mallarmé Prize

The Mallarmé literary prize is usually awarded at the Brive Book Fair.

A prize to reward poets

The Grand Prix de l'Académie Mallarmé, named after its founder Stéphane Mallarmé, has been awarded by the Académie Mallarmé since 1937. The Académie is made up of writers and poets, but since 1976 the competition has rewarded the most prestigious poets in France. To be eligible for the prize, poets must be published within the year and be French-speaking.

The winners of the Mallarmé Prize

The 2026 edition

In 2026, the Haitian poet James Noël was named the winner for his collection *Paons* (published by Éditions Diable Vauvert). In his work, the Haitian poet James Noël pays tribute to his ancestors, his country and his culture, whilst hoping for the reawakening of a people currently ravaged by political circumstances and the omnipresence of armed gangs

The prize will be presented at the 44th Brive Book Fair on 7 November 2026.

Previous winners

Valeriu Stancu in 2025
Alain Breton in 2024
Béatrice Bonhomme in 2023
Christophe Mahy in 2022
Christian Viguié in 2021
Jean Le Boël in 2020
Claudine Bohi in 2019
Béatrice de Jurquet in 2018
Philippe Mathy in 2017
Gérard Bayo in 2016
Werner Lambersy in 2015
Hubert Haddad in 2014

The city of Brive as a partner

The city of Brive-la-Gaillarde is providing financial support for the winner:

1,900 for the winner at the prize-giving ceremony during the Foire du Livre.
1,900 to finance a month's writing residency in Brive.