Meet the 2023 Combat national des livres contenders
The four-day French-language book debate show will air on Radio-Canada from May 15-18, 2023
The Combat national des livres, a four-day book debate show in French, will air live on Radio-Canada from May 15-18, 2023.
The show will be moderated by Marie-Louise Arsenault, host of Radio-Canada's Tout peut arriver.
The five contenders are each defending books from the region of Canada they represent. These regions are not official regions, but are geographical and metaphorical.
Representing the First Nations, Inuit and Métis nations is drama teacher and activist Xavier Watso. Watso is championing the French translation of Drew Hayden Taylor's Motorcycles and Sweetgrass titled Le baiser de Nanabush and translated by Eva Lavergne.
Ontario will be represented by CBC/Radio-Canada investigative journalist Brigitte Noël. Noël is championing L'incendiaire de Sudbury by Chloé LaDuchesse.
The Atlantic region will be represented by actor, poet, playwright and singer Gabriel Robichaud, who is from New Brunswick. Robichaud is championing Rivières-aux-Cartouches by Sébastien Bérubé.
Western Canada will be represented by Radio-Canada Manitoba host Patricia Bitu Tshikudi. Tshikudi is championing Le radeau by Jean-Pierre Dubé.
Quebec will be represented by multifaceted actor and director Gilles Renaud. Renaud is championing Nous étions le sel de la mer by Roxanne Bouchard. The book was translated into English in 2017 by David Warriner under the title We Were the Salt of the Sea.
The Combat national des livres is inspired by Canada Reads. Two of the five books are available to read in English: Drew Hayden Taylor's Motorcycles and Sweetgrass and Roxanne Bouchard's We Were the Salt of the Sea translated by David Warriner.
From April 17 to May 18, the public is invited to vote for their favourite book to determine the winner of Combat national des livres, the one book all of Canada should read. Those who participate in the vote will have the chance to win an e-reader and $500 worth of books.
L'averti by Vanessa Léger won the 2022 edition of Combat national des livres. The book was defended by singer and actor Serge Brideau.
