Writer Laurent Mauvignier Tuesday won France’s top literary award, the Goncourt, for his family saga spanning the 20th century and recounting the story of his grandmother accused of collaborating during World War II.

Just one round of voting sufficed for the jury to select the 58-year-old author for his opus “La Maison Vide” (“The Empty House”), inspired by stories he heard about his paternal family throughout his childhood.

“I’m overjoyed,” Mauvignier said as he received the prize.

It’s “a huge reward because it’s a book that comes from (my) childhood and spans several generations”, he added.

The prestigious Goncourt prize usually generates book sales in the hundreds of thousands for the winning author.

But the prize money is a meagre cheque for 10 euros ($11) that usually ends up fr

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