Modiano, 69, published his first novel, La Place de l'Etoile, in 1968; he won the Prix Goncourt in 1978, and over the following three decades he has confirmed his status with a celebrated body of work, including Out of the Dark and Dora Bruder. "Actually, I never thought of doing anything else," he said of his literary career in 2011 to France Today. "I had no diploma, no definite goal to achieve. But it is tough for a young writer to begin so early. Really, I prefer not to read my early books. Not that I don't like them, but I don't recognise myself anymore, like an old actor watching himself as a young leading man."