Alain Grandbois
Alain Grandbois was a prominent Québécois writer born in 1900 into a wealthy French Canadian family. He pursued his education at several notable institutions, including the College of Montreal and Laval University, ultimately earning a law degree in 1924. Following his studies, Grandbois traveled extensively, spending significant time in France, which became his base for a period. His literary career began with biographical works, including his first book, *Born in Quebec*, published in 1933, which focused on the life of explorer Louis Jolliet. He returned to Canada amidst the rising tensions of World War II and worked as a bibliographer for a prominent library in Montreal. It was during this time that he turned to poetry, producing influential works recognized in Québec's literary scene. His major poetry collections, *Les Iles de la nuit* (1944) and *Rivages de l'homme* (1948), solidified his reputation as a significant literary figure. Over his lifetime, Grandbois received several accolades, including the Lorne Pierce Medal in 1954 and the Prix Athanase-David award in 1970, before passing away in 1975.
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Subject Terms
Alain Grandbois
Poet
- Born: May 25, 1900
- Birthplace: Saint-Casimir-de-Portneuf, Quèbec, Canada
- Died: March 18, 1975
- Place of death: Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Biography
Alain Grandbois was born in 1900 in Québec. He came from a family of wealthy French Canadians. Grandbois studied at the College of Montreal, at Saint-Dunstan University in Charlottetown, and at the Laval University of Québec. In 1924 he completed his law degree. After completing school, Grandbois began traveling around the world. He spent most of his time living in France and used it as his home base. In 1933 he published his first biography, Born in Quebec, about the life of explorer Louis Jolliet. In 1941 he published a second book, Les Voyages de Marco Polo.
As tensions rose in Europe during the buildup to World War II, Grandbois returned home to Canada. In 1940 he took a job as bibliographer for the Saint Sulpice Library of Montreal. During this time Grandbois started to write poetry. His poems were regarded as significant works of literary importance in Québec, and they would influence the area’s future writers. The majority of Grandbois’s poems were published in two collections: Les Iles de la nuit in 1944 and Rivages de l’homme in 1948. For the remainder of his life, Alain Grandbois continued to write and live in Québec, and he received a number of awards, including the Lorne Pierce Medal in 1954 and the Prix Athanase-David award in 1970. Grandbois died in March of 1975 in Québec.