Papillon is a
memoir by convicted felon and fugitive
Henri Charrière, first published in France in
1969, describing his escape from
Devil's Island, part of the French penal colony in
French Guiana. It became an instant bestseller. It was translated into English from the original French by June P. Wilson and Walter B. Michaels for a 1970 edition, and later by author
Patrick O'Brian. The book was adapted for a Hollywood 1973
film of the same name.