Edouard Leve delivered the manuscript for his final book, Suicide, just a few days before he took his own life.

Édouard Levé (1965-2008), born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, was a writer, photographer, and visual artist. Levé was the author of four books of writing Oeuvres, Journal, Autoportrait, and Suicide, as well as three books of photography. 

Jan Steyn is a South African translator from French and Afrikaans to English. He holds a degree in Comparative Literature from Emory University, and his translations include Suicide and Works by Édouard Levé.