READING from “Ismael’s Thousand Lives” by Raphaelle Calande

Fifteen-year-old Ismaël is hardly surprised when he loses his temper and gets expelled from school… His mother, on the verge of a nervous breakdown, sends him to his uncle in Lyon for an internship at a small restaurant. There, Ismaël apparently has one last chance to make things right. But Ismaël didn’t ask for this; he’s at the end of his rope and no longer believes in it. Until Céleste appears through the swinging doors of the kitchen. She’s an apprentice. He’s mesmerized. With her, a world opens up that’s vast. Ismaël is catapulted into … a thousand new lives!

After studying modern literature in Lyon, author Raphaëlle Calande taught French in places such as French Polynesia—a formative experience that inspired her protagonist, Ismaël—and later near Montpellier. For years, she has been writing alongside her students in group workshops. She is committed to helping students who have dropped out of school and hopes to encourage them to believe in themselves through her stories. In 2025, she received the Franco-German Youth Literature Prize for this novel.

With support from the DFJW, Occitanie, and l’Agence Unique Occitanie Culture