The boss of Grasset editions, Olivier Nora, dismissed by Vincent Bolloré

Thunderclap at Grasset. Olivier Nora, historic boss of the publishing house, in office since 2000, was dismissed from his position, as revealed by L’Express. Information confirmed to Le Parisien. The departure of Olivier Nora, one of the most renowned publishers in Paris, replaced by Jean-Christophe Thiery, must be made official at the end of the week, Le Canard Enchaîné indicated on its site.

According to L’Express, the publisher was thanked by Vincent Bolloré, head of the Hachette group, Grasset’s parent company. Neither Grasset nor Hachette have officially confirmed the information. The Breton billionaire took control of the group in 2023, buying it from Arnaud Lagardère.

In recent weeks, the Grasset publishing house has signed the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, until then with Flammarion. According to a source close to the matter, the publisher’s departure is linked to a disagreement over the release date of the author’s next book, devoted to his detention in Algeria, the management of Hachette wanting it in June while Olivier Nora preferred it to be in November.

“It was a shield against Vincent Bolloré”

In the world of publishing, this eviction has the effect of a tsunami, starting with Hachette, where employees learned about it through the press. “His departure is extremely worrying. Olivier Nora is righteousness incarnate; it was a shield against Vincent Bolloré. If he is no longer there, the dike will blow,” worries an executive.

For an editor from another renowned house in the group: “Olivier Nora is undoubtedly one of the greatest professionals in the publishing world, his departure is very worrying. It is a great loss for Grasset and I think that many authors will leave the house. » Among these feathers, we count Sorj Chalandon, Laurent Binet, Laure Adler, Raphaëlle Bacqué, Pascal Bruckner.

“The wolf is officially out of the fold,” quips a professional. Many naively believed that Vincent Bolloré would be satisfied with Fayard, but that is really not knowing him well. The departure of Olivier Nora is a very bad and worrying omen for French publishing, which, moreover, is not in the best shape. »

A departure for another house?

Olivier Nora is a heavyweight in the publishing sector. Before managing Grasset, he was successively director of the French Book Office in New York between 1991 and 1994 then of Calmann-Lévy editions until 2000. In parallel with his position at Grasset, he also took the helm of the Fayard house between 2009 and 2013.

Olivier Nora comes from a prestigious family. His father, Simon Nora, was an advisor to statesmen Pierre Mendès France and Jacques Chaban-Delmas. He is also the half-brother of the former press boss Fabrice Nora and the journalist Dominique Nora. His uncle was also the historian Pierre Nora.

It remains to be seen what Olivier Nora, who has just celebrated his 66th birthday, will do next. “He is brilliant and he will be an editor until the end of his days,” says one of his acquaintances. Some already see him joining Les Nouveaux Éditeurs, a young publishing group created by Arnaud Nourry, former CEO of Hachette Livre, fired in 2021 by the Arnaud Lagardère-Vincent Bolloré duo, or even Gallimard.