Marie NDiaye, a French novelist and playwright, was the first black woman to win the Prix Goncourt, a prestigious literary award given to "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year." Her novel, "Trois Femmes Puissantes," is a tale of three women: Norah, Franta and Khady. French newspaper, Le Monde says that it was a novel that brilliantly illustrates moral decay, the baseness of humanity, and the suffering of humanity. This is a great honor for her and for France.
NDiaye, born to a French mother and a Senegalese father, was raised in the Parisian suburb, Pithiviers. She wrote her first novel "Quant au riche avenir" at the age of 18. In 2001, she won the Femina Prize for her work, "Rosie Carpe."

NDiaye now lives in Berlin. However, her emigration following the election of Nicolas Sarkozy caused some controversy. She feels that France is "monstrous" and "vulgar" under his presidency and prefers life in Berlin.