Westmount hosts several Blue Met events
With the arrival of spring, Montreal’s yearly celebration of the written word is back as well.
The 11th annual Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival runs from April 22 through 26, with the theme 'Words That Matter'.
Westmount writers taking part in the festival include Henry T. Aubin, Cecilia Pisos, Anne Renaud, Clare Holden Rothman, Eric Siblin and Joel Silverstein. A number of Festival-related events will take place in and around Westmount, as well.
On Monday, April 20, the Atwater Library and Computer Centre will hold a preview of the Festival, presented by Blue Metropolis founder and Artistic Director Linda Leith. There is no charge, though donations for the library are welcome.
“Linda Leith has given a Blue Met Festival preview talk at the Atwater Library each year for the past three years,” said Library Director Lynn Verge. “The audiences have appreciated hearing about the Festival from the Artistic Director, and getting scoops for choosing from among the Festival’s myriad offerings.”
This year marks the second Blue Metropolis Children’s Festival. Events will be held at the Westmount Library, the Montreal Children’s Library, and at Babar en Ville. “We were asked if we wanted to participate again,” said Wendy Wayling, Children’s Librarian at the Westmount Library. “Last year was really successful, we had a lot of people come, so we said yes.”
Three author readings
The Westmount Library has three writers coming in for the Blue Metropolis Children’s Festival. On April 22, Raquel Rivera will read from and discuss her book Orphan Ahwak; everyone who comes will have the chance to design a book cover. The event is aimed at ages 8 to 12. On April 23, Jennifer Lloyd will read from her picture book Looking for Loons, with a craft activity to follow. The reading is expected to appeal to children from 6 to 8. Finally, on April 24, Henry Aubin will read from his book Rise of the Golden Cobra. The reading is aimed at children aged 11 and up, and will focus on the Egyptian history underlying the book. “Because they’re on weekdays we’ve invited school classes,” said Wayling, “but the events are open to the public; anyone can come in.”
The Atwater Branch of the Montreal Children’s Library will host a visit from book illustrator Yayo on April 22. Registration is required for this event, which will be bilingual.
Finally, bookstore Babar en Ville will host André Duhaime and Hélène Leclerc, who will give a haiku workshop. The activity, which will be in French, takes place on April 24. The next day, Yayo will visit the store to lead his audience through the process of creating a children’s book. Both activities are free of charge.
The Blue Metropolis Foundation also maintains educational programmes, including creative writing workshops, contests, and special publishing initiatives. Westmount High English teacher Dina Vourdousis will be working with the Foundation for the third consecutive year. This year, her class will be involved in the Voices from Quebec programme, producing an oral history documentary on the FLQ crisis.
Most events for the Blue Metropolis Festival will be held downtown, at the Delta Centre-Ville hotel. More information may be found at the Blue Metropolis web site at www.bluemetropolis.org
