Blue Metropolis launches 2016 program
The multilingual literary festival brings together writers from 10 countries in Montreal, April 11 to 17
The Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival is in its 18th year, and this year's edition promises more than 200 events for adults and kids.
The 2016 festival brings 235 writers to Montreal from 10 countries and takes place from April 11 to 17.
"Blue Met is one of the biggest book festivals in North America," said programming director Greg McCormick.
The festival holds literary events in five different languages, something McCormick says makes it unique in Montreal.
"Anglophones listen to French events and francophones listen to English events and the Spanish events and the Italian events," he said.
5 events to mark on your calendar:
1. Anne Carson, 2016 Blue Met grand prize literary winner
Anne Carson is considered one of the top English-language poets in the world.
She is scheduled to talk about her work and life in a conversation with Eleanor Wachtel, host of CBC's Writers & Company.
Saturday April 16 at 4:00 p.m., Grande Bibliothèque
2. Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist: Sunil Yapa and the protest novel
Sri Lankan-American writer Sunil Yapa delivers a fictionalized account of the WTO riots in Seattle in the early 2000s.
Saturday April 16 at 5:30 p.m., Espace Godin (Hôtel 10)
3. A renaissance of fiction
Irish writing is going through a renaissance, and writers Anakana Schofield (Martin John), Christine Dwyer Hickey (The Lives of Women) and Paul Lynch (The Black Snow) will be interviewed by CBC Montreal's arts reporter Jeanette Kelly.
Saturday April 16, 12:30 p.m., Salle Saint Laurent, Hôtel 10
4. Empire of Self: Jay Parini on the life of Gore Vidal
Jay Parini, author of The Last Station, a novel about the final year of Tolstoy's life, will be speaking with CBC The Sunday Edition's Michael Enright about his latest book, a biography of Gore Vidal.
Saturday April 16, 8:00 p.m., Salle St-Laurent (Hôtel 10)
5. Premio Azul: Valeria Luiselli and The Story of My Teeth
Valeria Luiselli is a young Mexican writer and her novel, The Story of My Teeth, tells the tale of a man obsessed with the teeth of famous people. Luiselli will receive the 2016 Blue Met Premio Azul and be interviewed by Scott Esposito, one of the literary world's most respected young critics.
Friday April 15, 6:00 p.m., Salle Jardin (Hôtel 10)