Although not a great traveler and very attached to his native Provence, Jean Giono resided briefly in Mallorca, curiously here, in Son Sardina.
Off the main roads, there are just tracks and paths where you can calmly stroll... Gradually you can get to distinguish the birdsong, insect cries, and velvety sound of the wind on the different leaves. The aromas -none other than the bitter fragrance of almond flowers or sap of fig trees -will transport you even more swiftly than the most modern caravel. Do you want to take a trip? It is now that you really travel, on your two feet with all five senses…thus learning that travelling is not a means but a goal...
La chasse au bonheur “Les Joies de l’ile”, 1969
Translated by Rachel Waters.
(Manosque, France, 1895 – 1970). French writer and screen writer Jean Giono was deeply attached to his native Provence throughout the whole of his life, as reflected in his work. During the First World War, he was sent to the front at Verdun and his experiences of war would have a profound effect on him, making him an unshakeable pacifist.
Following his first novel Colline (1928), he devoted himself fully to literature, suffusing it with the values that he believed in: pacifism, ecology and humanism. References to his love of nature are a constant feature of his work. The Man Who Planted Trees (1953) has an environmental message, set in the place of his birth and seen through landscapes. His novels have become major 20th century French classics, such as The Horseman on the Roof (1951) and A King Without Distraction (1947).
Although he was not a great traveller, his work often evokes long journeys or departures and he was even nicknamed the “motionless traveller”. With the exception of brief stays in Mallorca and Italy, he mainly lived in his Provence town.
"Les joies de l'île" (1969) forms part of the collection La chasse au bonheur, published by Gallimard in 1988 and featuring stories that initially appeared in the press between 1966 and 1970.
The village of Son Sardina takes its name from a large Mallorcan country house documented as existing in the 17th century. Taking advantage of the close links between Son Sardina and different watercourses, several mills were located there and crops were grown. Toward the end of the 19th century, industry reached the village when a textile factory, Ribes, opened its doors and the factory went on toforge an important name within the textile sector of the time. With the growth of tourism, there was a decline in Son Sardina’s agriculture and industry, offset by growing residential development. Son Sardina still features important items of architectural and cultural heritage, like its municipal cross, church, and examples of traditional architecture. The village has a street dedicated to Jean Giono.
