Publication of This Is Me, Eddie in France

The French publication of It’s Me, Eddie in the fall of 1980 turned a period of apparent hopelessness into a decisive breakthrough for Eduard Limonov’s book. Jean-Jacques Pauvert took it on after reading a couple of translated chapters, then gave it a sensational title that announced its arrival in France on his own terms.

Discovery and Decision

After false hopes and what seemed like a knockout blow, the prospects for the book suddenly improved. Someone in Paris brought it to Pauvert’s attention. Limonov did not yet know that Pauvert was a legendary, heretical publisher; on the strength of two translated chapters, Pauvert was already convinced and decided to publish.

Pauvert’s Reputation

The decision carried the weight of Pauvert’s own publishing history. He had published the Surrealists, the Marquis de Sade, and Story of O, and was described as the equal of Lawrence Ferlinghetti. He had also been convicted ten times for breaches of moral standards or for insulting the head of state, each time rising again with evident relish. His record made him a fitting publisher for a book whose French appearance would be marked by provocation rather than a neutral translation of its original title.

Title and Publication

Publication was not straightforward: Pauvert’s company had gone bankrupt again, so he had to find refuge with another publisher. That difficulty did not prevent the book from appearing in France in the fall of 1980. Pauvert supplied the sensational title The Russian Poet Prefers Big Blacks, recasting It’s Me, Eddie for its French publication and making the act of publication itself a conspicuous cultural event.