Nathalie Abroad, 1959–64

This chapter describes the widespread foreign interest in Nathalie Sarraute's work after “The Planetarium” was published, including contracts for translation and invitations to give talks and lectures. It highlights Nathalie's distinctive profile on the English language and to Maria Jolas's links with publishers in the United States and the United Kingdom. It also mentions Nathalie's acquisition of a literary agent in the United States, Renée Spodheim, who reported that enquiries about a translation of “Portrait of an Unknown Man” had come from the London publisher, Peter Owen, and from George Braziller in the United States. The chapter details Nathalie's tour of the United States, where she was treated like royalty and taken to the best restaurants. It discloses Nathalie's enthusiasm for the United States, in which she made thirteen further visits over the course of the next thirty years.