Le Limousin en pages | Limousin

A quick of a view

1. In Limoges with Balzac

and his novel "Le Curé de village

Honoré de Balzac takes you to Limoges. In this novel, conceived as a detective story, the author goes on to develop themes close to his heart: love, religion, redemption and the improvement of living conditions for peasants. 🕵️

A murder mystery, an investigation, a trial… Shall we sit down in the Cour du Temple in Limoges to leaf through this novel? ⚖️

Discover Limoges

2. On the set of Millevaches with Gilbert Bordès

and his novel "Tête de Lune

What better way to immerse yourself in life on the Plateau de Millevaches than in a novel entitled “Tête de Lune”? Indeed, the Millevaches regional nature park has been classified an International Dark Sky Reserve for the quality of its skies. 🌟

As the pages turn, you’ll follow the crazy odyssey full of adventure and encounters of two children in search of recognition and a little love… A timeless escape like you’d expect to experience in this wild and authentic mountain territory! 💚

Warning! Once you’ve turned the last page, you too, like little Baptiste, may want to run away to the Millevaches plateau with a dog and a friend! 😉

Discover Vassivière and the Millevaches NRP

3. In Bellac with Jean Giraudoux

and the novel "Siegfried and the Limousin".

The Trojan War will not take place in Bellac! But the playwright Jean Giraudoux was born in this northern Haute-Vienne town. A museum is dedicated to him in the house where he was born!

Best known today for his plays such as Electre and Ondine, Jean Giraudoux made his name with his novel Siegfried et le Limousin.

A literary and philosophical work, it questions questions ofidentity, and also deals with thefriendship between two childhood friends. It’s enough to make you want to create your own Limousin memories: fishing in wild rivers, swimming in lakes…

Discover Jean Giraudoux's birthplace

4. In the eternal Limousin with Claude Michelet

and his novel "Des grives aux loups" ("From thrushes to wolves")

Fancy an immersion in the Limousin of yesteryear? Then a novel by Correzien Claude Michelet is just what you need! A farmer and novelist, he has written a number of highly successful local novels.

“Les grives aux loups” is a 4-volume family saga that plunges you into peasant life in Limousin at the beginning of the 20th century.

And to keep up with the atmosphere of this historical novel, treat yourself to a visit to the “rural nostalgia ” trail in Montrol-Sénard and its village, as if frozen in time.

Discover the Nostalgie Rurale route

5. In Limoges with Georges-Emmanuel Clancier

and his novel "Le pain noir", adapted for the screen by Serge Moati

Born in Limoges, novelist Georges-Emmanuel Clancier has never severed his ties with Limousin, the nurturing ground of his literary inspiration. In his novel “Le Pain noir”, he traces the story of a family of farmers and workers from 1870 to the Second World War. 📖

In the 70s, director Serge Moati made a film adaptation of it, shot in Châlus, Saint-Yrieix, Oradour, Saint-Léonard, Limoges. Perhaps you’ve followed little Cathie’s adventures on the small screen, from the farm to the porcelain factories and the struggles of her time? 📽️

We’d like to invite you to Georges-Emmanuel Clancier’s land to read this book he wrote as a tribute to his grandmother. All that remains is to find the best place: on a bench on the banks of the Vienne in Limoges, where the writer was born? At the foot of the Château de Châlus, where his father was born? Or at the top of the Tour du Plô in Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche, his mother’s birthplace? 🏰

Discover Limoges porcelain

6. In the peaceful countryside of Limousin with Annie Duperey

and his autobiographical novel "Le poil et la plume" ("The Hair and the Feather")

For over 30 years, theParisian actress has enjoyed recharging her batteries in Creuse in Limousin, where she finds calm, serenity and inspiration for her writing. 🎬

An ambassador of charm, Annie Duperey transports you to the deep and eternal Limousin with her autobiographical tale “Le poil et la plume”. In it, she recounts her life in the countryside in the company of her cats and gallinaceous animals, for which you’ll fall head over heels! 🐔

Enough to make you want to jump on the first train to visit us in Limousin for a weekend… or a lifetime! 😉

Rejuvenate in unspoilt natural surroundings

Randonnée du Prieuré de l'Artige à Saint Leonard de Noblat

7. In the peat bogs with Michel Peyramaure

and his novel "La maison des tourbières".

Corrèze-born Michel Peyramaure is considered a master of the historical novel, with over a hundred books to his credit. 📚

In “La maison des tourbières”, Peyramaure invites us to follow the life of a farmer’s daughter from a lost village on the Millevaches plateau during the interwar period.

Passionate about writing, the heroine became a schoolteacher while remaining faithful to her literary dreams. The success of her first book presents her with a cruel dilemma: go to Paris to make a career or stay on the Plateau de Millevaches… Anyone who has been there can only understand her: how can she bring herself to leave this peace, this silence and this majestic nature? 💚

Discover the Tourbière des Dauges

8. In medieval Limousin with Yves Aubard

and his "Saga of the Limousins".

Are you a fan of history? Yves Aubard has something for you. This native of the Haute-Vienne region is the author of a saga entitled ” La saga des Limousins ” ( The Saga of the Limousins ), of which there are already no less than twenty volumes!

Let’s dive into the history of Limousin and Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. We start with the first volume, “Le Seigneur de Châlus”, in which you’ll follow the adventures of Lou, a foundling, against the backdrop of the miracle of the Mal des Ardents in Limoges, the first Ostensions, the war between the Limousins and the Périgourdins…

Live my life as a knight

9. In Bellac with Jean de la Fontaine

and the fable "Le coche et la mouche".

Who doesn’t know the Fables de la Fontaine? If you feel like a poet or a fabulist, Bellac is the place for you! Indeed, it was in this town of character at the gateway to the Monts de Blond that Jean de la Fontaine wrote his fable “Le coche et la mouche”. 🪰

You don’t have to come by horse-drawn carriage. If you miss the boat, the historic heart of Bellac is accessible by bus, train, bicycle, steed or your little feet! With a 160 km loop for the more athletic. 🐎

Hue, dia! Access the town via its 13th-century stone bridge while declaiming the opening lines: “In a path rising, sandy, uneasy, and on all sides exposed to the sun, six strong horses pulled a coche…” 😉

Discover Bellac

10. In Oradour sur Glane with Franck Liniol

and his detective novel "Matin de cendres

When a noir thriller revisits the dark hours of Limousin history…

In 2013, after the identification of seven former SS men, the case of the Oradour massacre is reopened. The German police are in charge of the investigation, with the help of Commissaire Dumontel of the SRPJ in Limoges.

In this 6th opus of his detective series “Meurtres en Limousin”, Franck Linol plunges you into a thrilling political thriller that boldly blends history, detective fiction and current affairs.

Discover Oradour sur Glane

9. In the Limousin gourmand with Régine Rossi-Lagorce

and his books on "gourmet travel in Limousin".

We’ve thought about gourmets… So we’ve added to our selection the works of Régine Rossi-Lagorce, culinary columnist for France Bleu. 😋

” Bréjaude et clafoutis “, ” Bouligou et farcidure “… her books are a veritable literary ode to gourmandise made in Limousin! 🍒

With her nostalgic pen, she’ll transport you to the gourmet Haute-Vienne: local dishes, family recipes and recounted memories. I promise, you’ll be salivating and rushing to the kitchen… or to the table of our tasty restaurants! 🍴

Discover Limousin specialities

10. The Haute-Vienne of your future vacation

"Les Sites Remarquables du Limousin: la Haute-Vienne" (The Remarkable Sites of the Limousin: Haute-Vienne)

We couldn’t resist the pleasure of ending this top 12 with a beautiful book, just to get you dreaming about your next vacation in Limousin! 🧳

Richly illustrated and abundantly detailed, this book invites you to discover the unsuspected wealth and variety of the landscape, history and legendary heritage of the Haute-Vienne department. 👁️‍🗨️

Indeed, our beautiful département boasts no fewer than 56 “remarkable sites”, including Le Chalard, Château de Nieul, Mont Gargan, Eymoutiers… Leaf through, admire, dream… and plan your next visits to Haute-Vienne! 🌟

You can now book your stay, your “reading pile” is ready, the Limousin is waiting for you! 😉

Discover the must-see sites