# David Bellos

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British academic, translator and biographer (1945–2025)

**David Michael Bellos**[1] (25 June 1945 – 26 October 2025) was a British academic, translator and biographer.[2] He was the Meredith Howland Pyne professor of [French](/source/French_literature) and [comparative literature](/source/Comparative_literature) at [Princeton University](/source/Princeton_University) in the United States,[3] and was the co-founder and first director, from 2007, of its translation and [intercultural communication](/source/Intercultural_communication) program.[4]

## Early life and education

Bellos was born in Rochford, England, on 25 June 1945, and educated in nearby Southend-on-Sea. He earned an undergraduate degree in medieval and modern languages (French and Russian) in 1967 and a D.Phil in [French literature](/source/French_literature) in 1971, both at the [University of Oxford](/source/University_of_Oxford).[4]

## Career

Bellos wrote [literary biographies](/source/Biography_in_literature) of [Romain Gary](/source/Romain_Gary) and [Georges Perec](/source/Georges_Perec), and published work on [Honoré de Balzac](/source/Honor%C3%A9_de_Balzac); and his *The Novel of the Century* tells the story of the writing of *[Les Misérables](/source/Les_Mis%C3%A9rables)* by [Victor Hugo](/source/Victor_Hugo). He composed a biography of the filmmaker [Jacques Tati](/source/Jacques_Tati), *[Jacques Tati: His Life and Art](/source/Jacques_Tati%3A_His_Life_and_Art)*, and appeared in the documentary *The Magnificent Tati.*[5][6]

Other works include an introduction to [translation studies](/source/Translation_studies), *Is That a Fish in Your Ear? Translation and The Meaning of Everything* (2011)[7] and *Who Owns This Sentence. A History of Copyrights and Wrongs*, written with Alexandre Montagu and published in 2024.

He translated much of the work of Perec into English, including the novel *[Life: A User's Manual](/source/Life%3A_A_User's_Manual)*.

Bellos won the first [Man Booker International Prize](/source/Man_Booker_International_Prize) for translation in 2005 for his translations of works by Albanian author [Ismail Kadare](/source/Ismail_Kadare), despite not speaking Albanian. His translations were done from previous French translations.[8]

## Personal life and death

Bellos' marriages to Hélène Roth-Laszlo and Susan Lendrum ended in divorce. At the time of his death he was married to Pascale Voilley Bellos.[1] He was the father of three children (and seven grandchildren), including writer and broadcaster [Alex Bellos](/source/Alex_Bellos).[9] David Bellos died at his vacation home in Doussard, France, on 26 October 2025, at the age of 80.[1][10]

## Awards and honours

- 1988 [French-American Foundation](/source/French-American_Foundation) prize for translation[3]

- 1994 [Prix Goncourt de la Biographie](/source/Prix_Goncourt_de_la_Biographie)[3]

- 2005 [Man Booker International Prize](/source/Man_Booker_International_Prize), for translation of works by [Ismail Kadare](/source/Ismail_Kadare)[8]

- 2015 *Officier* of the [Ordre des Arts et des Lettres](/source/Ordre_des_Arts_et_des_Lettres)[3]

- 2017 [American Library in Paris Book Award](/source/American_Library_in_Paris_Book_Award) winner for *The Novel of the Century*[11]

- 2019 Howard T. Behrman Award for Distinguished Achievement in the Humanities, Princeton University[12]

## Publications

### Translations

- [Georges Perec](/source/Georges_Perec): *[Life A User's Manual](/source/Life_A_User's_Manual)*, 1987 (French-American Foundation's translation prize); new edition, 2008

- Georges Perec: *[W, or the Memory of Childhood](/source/W%2C_or_the_Memory_of_Childhood)*, 1988

- Georges Perec: *[Things: A Story of the Sixties](/source/Things%3A_A_Story_of_the_Sixties)*, 1990

- Georges Perec: *53 Days*, 1992

- [Ismail Kadare](/source/Ismail_Kadare): *[The Pyramid](/source/The_Pyramid_(Kadare_novel))*, 1995

- Ismail Kadare:*[The File on H](/source/The_File_on_H)*, 1996

- [Georges Ifrah](/source/Georges_Ifrah): *A Universal History of Numbers*, 2000

- Ismail Kadare: *[Spring Flowers, Spring Frost](/source/Spring_Flowers%2C_Spring_Frost)*, 2001

- [Fred Vargas](/source/Fred_Vargas): *Have Mercy On Us All*, 2003

- Fred Vargas: *Seeking Whom He May Devour*, 2004

- Ismail Kadare: *[The Successor](/source/The_Successor_(Kadare))*, 2005

- Ismail Kadare: *[Agamemnon's Daughter](/source/Agamemnon's_Daughter)*, 2006

- Ismail Kadare: *[The Siege](/source/The_Siege_(Kadare_novel))*, 2008

- [Hélène Berr](/source/H%C3%A9l%C3%A8ne_Berr): *Journal*, 2008

- Georges Perec: *Thoughts of Sorts*, 2009

- [Romain Gary](/source/Romain_Gary): *[Hocus Bogus](/source/Hocus_Bogus)*, 2010

- Georges Perec: *[The Art and Craft of Approaching Your Head of Department to Submit a Request for a Raise](/source/The_Art_and_Craft_of_Approaching_Your_Head_of_Department_to_Submit_a_Request_for_a_Raise)*, 2011

- [Georges Simenon](/source/Georges_Simenon): *Pietr the Latvian*, 2013

- Daniel Anselme: *On Leave*, 2014

- [Ismail Kadare](/source/Ismail_Kadare): *[Twilight of the Eastern Gods](/source/Twilight_of_the_Eastern_Gods)*, 2014

- [Georges Perec](/source/Georges_Perec): *Portrait of a Man*, 2014 (UK), 2015 (USA)

- [Georges Perec](/source/Georges_Perec): *I Remember*, 2014 (USA) (with Philip Terry)

- [Paul Fournel](/source/Paul_Fournel), *Dear Reader*, 2014 (UK)

- Georges Simenon: *The Pitards*, 2015

- [Frédéric Dard](/source/Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric_Dard), *Bird in a Cage*2016 (UK)

- [Delphine Horvilleur](/source/Delphine_Horvilleur), *Anti-Semitism Revisited*, 2021 (UK)

- [Maxime Rovere](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maxime_Rovere&action=edit&redlink=1), *How To Deal With Idiots (and stop being one yourself)*, 2021 (UK)

- Victor Hugo, *Seventeen Ninety-Three*, forthcoming 2026 (UK)

### Biographies

- *Georges Perec. A Life in Words*, 1993. ([Prix Goncourt de la biographie](/source/Prix_Goncourt)). French edition, 1994. Japanese edition, 2014. Hebrew edition, 2016. New edition in French, 2022; German translation, 2023; Turkish and Chinese translations in progress.

- *[Jacques Tati: His Life and Art](/source/Jacques_Tati%3A_His_Life_and_Art)*, 1999. French edition, 2002; Italian edition, 2022. German edition, 2024

- *[Romain Gary](/source/Romain_Gary). A Tall Story*, Harvill Secker, November 2010

### Other books

- *Balzac Criticism in France, 1850–1900. The Making of a Reputation*. Oxford, 1976

- *La Cousine Bette. A Critical Guide*. London, 1981

- *Old Goriot* (Landmarks of World Literature). Cambridge, 1987. Hebrew translation, Tek Aviv, 1990.

- *Is That a Fish in Your Ear? Translation and the Meaning of Everything*. London and New York, 2011. Paperback edition, 2012. French translation by Daniel Loayza as **Le poisson & le bananier**, Flammarion, 2012, republished in 2017 as *La Traduction dans tous ses états*. Spanish translation by Vicente Campos, as **Un Pez en la higuera**. Ariel, 2012. German translation by Silvia Morawetz as **Was macht der Fisch in meinem Ohr?**, Eichborn, 2013. Russian translation by Natalia Shahova, Azbuka, 2019. Traditional Chinese translation, Rye Field, Taipei, 2019. Also translated into Simplified Chinese, Korean, Japanese and [Persian](/source/Persian_language).

- *The Novel of the Century: The Extraordinary Adventure of* Les Misérables. London and New York, 2017. Korean edition, 2018. Japanese edition, 2018. Chinese edition, 2019

- *Who Owns This Sentence? A History of Copyrights and Wrongs*. With Alexandre Montagu. London and New York, 2024. Italian edition 2024. Korean edition 2024. Spanish edition 2025.

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-nyt_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-nyt_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-nyt_1-2) Risen, Clay (20 November 2025). ["David Bellos, 80, Dies; Wrestled French Wordplay Into English"](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/20/books/david-bellos-dead.html). *The New York Times*. Retrieved 21 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-bnf_2-0)** [Bellos, David (1945-....)](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb12129846q) (in French). *Catalogue général*. Paris: Bibliothèque nationale de France. Accessed April 2024.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-self_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-self_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-self_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-self_3-3) ["David Bellos"](https://fit.princeton.edu/people/david-bellos). *Department of French & Italian*. Princeton University. Retrieved 21 November 2025.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-saxon_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-saxon_4-1) Saxon, Jamie (14 November 2025). ["David Bellos (1945-2025)"](https://fit.princeton.edu/people/memoriam). *Department of French & Italian*. Princeton University. Retrieved 21 November 2025. Expand from "David Bellos (1945-2025)".

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["The Magnificent Tati"](https://www.film-documentaire.fr/4DACTION/w_fiche_film/41135). *film-documentaire.fr* (in French). Retrieved 21 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Bellos, David Michael (October 2025). ["Vita"](https://fit.princeton.edu/document/8931). *Department of French & Italian*. Princeton University. Retrieved 21 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** [*Is That A Fish In Your Ear?: Translation and the Meaning of Everything*](http://www.janklowandnesbit.co.uk/david-bellos/fish-your-ear-translation-and-meaning-everything) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20130724054956/http://www.janklowandnesbit.co.uk/david-bellos/fish-your-ear-translation-and-meaning-everything) 24 July 2013 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine) at [Janklow & Nesbit](/source/Morton_L._Janklow)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-cr_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-cr_8-1) ["The Englishing of Ismail Kadare"](http://www.complete-review.com/quarterly/vol6/issue2/bellos.htm) by David Bellos, *[complete review](/source/Complete_review) Quarterly*, vol. VI, issue 2 – May 2005

1. **[^](#cite_ref-whoswho_9-0)** Anon (2017). ["Bellos, Alexander"](https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U289184). *[Who's Who](/source/Who's_Who_(UK))* (online [Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press) ed.). Oxford: A & C Black. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.289184](https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fww%2F9780199540884.013.289184). (Subscription or [UK public library membership](https://www.ukwhoswho.com/page/subscribe#public) required.)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Denis Cosnard: ["David Bellos, traducteur et grand spécialiste de Georges Perec, est mort"](https://www.lemonde.fr/disparitions/article/2025/10/31/david-bellos-traducteur-et-grand-specialiste-de-georges-perec-est-mort_6650665_3382.html). *lemonde.fr*, 3 November 2025 (in French). Retrieved 5 November 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** ["The 2017 American Library in Paris Book Award goes to The Novel of the Century"](https://drive.google.com/file/d/14yIj4FyaH722w6v3LFUqzZdFZXy4T6lj/view) (Press release). American Library in Paris. [Google Drive](/source/Google_Drive). 3 November 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Saxon, Jamie (6 May 2019). ["David Bellos and Sean Wilentz receive Behrman Award for the humanities"](https://www.princeton.edu/news/2019/05/06/david-bellos-and-sean-wilentz-receive-behrman-award-humanities). *Princeton University*. Retrieved 21 November 2025.

## External links

- [David Bellos: Linguistic Diversity *is* Language](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y7A8-1WYvo) on [YouTube](/source/YouTube_video_(identifier))

- ["I, Translator"](https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/21/opinion/21bellos.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all) by David Bellos, *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)* (20 March 2010)

- [Review of *Georges Perec: A Life in Words*](http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mln/v111/111.4er_bellos.html) by [Alice Kaplan](/source/Alice_Kaplan)

- [Review](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/sep/22/is-that-a-fish-bellos-review) by Michael Hoffmann of *Is That a Fish in Your Ear?*, *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)* (22 September 2011)

- ["Babbling Barbarians: How Translators Keep Us Civilized: A conversation with David Bellos"](http://www.ideasroadshow.com/issues/david-bellos-2013-03-15) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20141019151848/http://www.ideasroadshow.com/issues/david-bellos-2013-03-15) 19 October 2014 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine) *Ideas Roadshow*, 2013

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [David Bellos](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellos) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bellos?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.