Highlights of the 2015 Festival

So everything we've been working for since May, 2014, finally came together and we did this whole Festival-thing.

Whew. I don't ever remember feeling so exhausted at the end of a Festival as I did at the end of this one. At our closing cocktail on Sunday, I literally couldn't follow any more conversations and I couldn't speak French at all. I was done. When I got home, I laid down at 8:30 and was out for the next 10 hours!

Gene Luen Yang at Drawn & Quarterly

Every Festival has moments which stay with us and for me, these are the standouts:

Junot Díaz at the Rialto: great conversation, packed hall, wonderful energy in the air. This was the largest show we ever put on and it was an all around success.

The Film Series wasn't as well attended as I'd hoped but since it's our first year of doing it, we weren't expecting major turn out (we find that these things take a few years to get going). Sitting in Living Stars on Sunday and hearing people laughing out loud throughout was very gratifying since I had such a personal connection to this film.

Performigrations events and their fascinating suitcase installation. Those people constantly impress
me: they were up late the night before installation, putting the finishing touches on those displays and they were absolutely fascinating.

Gene Luen Yang was such a cool dude and I love his writing even more (and I loved it before).

Oonya Kempadoo was as amazing in real life as her novels. I can't say enough good about her.

Enpuku-ji Zen Centre poetry events were packed and there was such a nice vibe in there.

Oonya

Yes, every year there are a few snafus, forgotten photocopies, missed calls, etc., but we managed to handle all these issues without much trouble. The snotty authors are easily forgotten (and, yes, every Festival there are a handful of those).

We love our public: they are so supportive, kind, offering constructive ideas and criticism and being honest about confusing descriptions, hotel facilities, organization of events, and more. This is vital. And we feel so lucky that our audiences are so loyal and devoted. Each year the familiar faces is very rewarding. We love all the new faces, too!



Thanks, everyone, for making the 2015 such a raging success!

Shoes at the entrance of the Enpuku-ji Zen Centre during a poetry event

Six Awesome Poetry Events at Blue Met 2015

This is a big year for poetry at Blue Met and on both Friday, April 24 and Saturday April 25, we have several poetry events for either lovers and fans of poetry or for those who maybe don't know a lot about Canadian poetry but want to learn more.

Our top six poetry events for 2015 include:

Don McKay and Mark Abley

Don McKay

Don McKay is one of Canada's most respected poets and his new tome, Angular Uncomformity, collects much of his long career's work into a single volume. This is the kind of book you keep my your nightstand and pull out each night to read a poem or two. I love that kind of poetry book that might take a year or longer to get through, and when you fall asleep the words are still ringing around in your head. McKay talks with Montreal poet and writer Mark Abley (who launches his own collection, Tongues of Earth immediately after).

Don McKay hasn't been in Montreal in many years, so now's your chance.

This event is on Saturday, April 25 at 12:30 and tickets are $8 (and is followed by Mark Abley's launch of Tongues of Earth at 2pm, free). Both of these events are at Hotel 10.

Jeramy Dodds

Marie Howe and Jeramy Dodds
The New York State Laureate, Marie Howe, is one of contemporary poetry's most unique talents. Author of What the Living Do and several other collections, Howe is a master of delving deep into the ways we grieve and let go, the way we weave memory in with a loved one's legacy.

I first came to Marie Howe's work via NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross and have been a fan ever since.

Howe speaks about her unique work and career with Canadian poet Jeramy Dodds (author of The Poetic Edda, a fascinating translation of Icelandic chronicles). When I was asking around to find a good host for the event, at least three people mentioned Dodds' name. Not only was he an extraordinary young poet, I was told, but he's great on stage.

Don't miss this rare chance to see two amazing poets in dialogue. Even better: it follows immediately Don McKay and Mark Abley so you can get your entire poetry fix in a few hours.

This event is on Saturday, April 25 at 3:30 pm. Tickets are only $8 and can be bought here. This event is at Hotel 10.

Annharte and Taiaiake Alfred
Our First Peoples Prize Winner, Anneharte, will discuss her fascinating work Indigena Awry, on-stage at 11:00 on Saturday April 25 at Hotel 10. I wrote a couple of weeks ago about this event but for lovers of poetry or for lovers of Indigenous Canadian writers or culture, this is a must-see event.

This one is $10 and tickets are here.

Poetry at the Zen Centre

Linda Besner

There are two events planned for the Enpuku-ji Zen Centre in the Plateau/Mile End on Friday, April 24. Both of these events are free. The first is a round-table on New Directions in 21st Century Poetry with Jeramy Dodds, Jeff Latosik and Linda Besner.. This event starts at 6:00 pm.

The reading which follows at 8pm will have readings by Marie Howe, Don McKay, Annharte, Jeramy Dodds and German performance poet Paul Weigl.

Both of these events are hosted by Carmine Starnino. And if you haven't been to the Enpuku-ji Zen Centre before, the space itself is worth the trip up. It's ideal for poetry and the evening is sure to be magical and inspiring.

Enpuku-ji Zen Centre

Derek Walcott: Poetry is an Island

Excellent Paris Review article on the work and career of Derek Walcott.

And though it's an old article, it cropped up on my Facebook feed the other day, and happily so. One event I am very excited about this year is a film we are screening called Derek Walcott: Poetry is an Island.

The film chronicles the place of St-Lucia and how it's a major part of the work of Derek Walcott: through interviews with his friends, family members, childhood buddies, and of course, through Derek himself, this beautiful documentary goes back and looks at the early history of the Nobel-prize winning writer: his father and mother; his early schooling, his dilapidated former childhood home and attempts to get it restored and turned into a museum.

Being from a small place that's almost off the map, I can relate to the kind of pride that comes from having your place associated with a big name. And Derek Walcott is a big name, make no mistake. When the dust settles from all the trends and side-steps that contemporary poetry is always in the midst of, Walcott will be remembered as one of the greats of our age: his relationship to nature, his pure language, his role as an outsider in a middle class white man's game, his sense of place which, no matter where he is or where the poem is set, is so acute and precise.

The documentary has a slow, soporific tone to it, never dull and never boring, but a sense that life on the island of St-Lucia moves slower than the rest of the world. The filmmakers linger on images: the waves, the wind in a palm tree, island animals, and they capture the sense of the island sensually in a very beautiful way. And, of course, there's Walcott's poetry which is just the perfect fit for this kind of tone.

Part of our series in 2015 on Caribbean writers, check out Derek Walcott: Poetry is an Island at Concordia University's De Sève Cinema on Saturday, April 25 at 7pm. Tickets are $10, $8.50 if you buy before April 8. Get your tickets here.

If you're looking for a book to start with to read some of Walcott's poetry, try White Egrets or The Fortunate Traveler.

Annharte at Blue Met 2015

As part of our ongoing efforts to promote all kinds of writing and writers, we created a new prize this year to shine a spotlight on Indigenous writers of Canada by creating the Blue Met First Peoples Literary Prize.

The inaugural prize is awarded this year to Anishnabe poet and activist Annharte for her amazing collection Indigena Awry.

This work is definitely one of the most original and provoking poetry collections I've read this year in preparing for this upcoming Festival. Annharte explores urban culture in fascinating and often hilarious ways: but in addition to her poems, she performs, tells stories, and fights for the rights of women and the disabled.

Annharte will do many events at Blue Met 2015 but the headline event is the awarding of the Blue Met First Peoples Prize to her on stage in conversation with activist Taiaiake Alfred. This event starts at 11:00 am on Saturday, April 25 and the tickets are $10 ($8.50 if you buy before April 8).

Annharte will also do a storytelling event at Westmount Library at 10:30 on April 23. This event is free.

She will be in conversation, too, with novelist Lee Maracle, on Witness: Indigenous Women Writers. This one is at 11:00 am on Sunday, April 26 at Hotel 10.

Finally, she will discuss artists and ability/disability in an on-stage discussion with Laurence Parent and Concordia Mobile Media Lab's Kimberly Sawchuk. Writing Disabilities: Poet + Activist on Sunday, April 26 at 12:30pm at Hotel 10. This event is free.

Junot Díaz at Blue Met

Winner of our 3rd Premio Metropolis Azul, Junot Díaz will be at the Festival this year to talk about his popular works, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao as well as his other book This is How You Lose Her.

Díaz is one of contemporary fiction's best-known practitioners and a recent BBC critics poll ranked Oscar Wao as the best book of the 21st century.

Díaz's books reflect a changing demographic in US and North American society: his works detail the immigrant experience, the difficulties of assimilation and, in particular, of language-learning. His works are full of memorable and unique protagonists who struggle to fit in but stand out with humour and incredibly colorful language.

A prolific Facebook user, Díaz is also preoccupied with racism and injustice in America today and his Facebook posts reflect his social conscience (and, indeed, much of what interests him as a fiction writer).

"We live in a society where default whiteness goes unremarked - no one ever asks it for its passport - but God forbid a person of color should raise her voice against this smug occult system of oppression, points out whiteness, its operations and consequences - well, in two seconds flat that person is the one accused of being obsessed with race."

It's very interesting to me how our writers reflect our societies and we can learn so much about what is happening in any given society by considering that society's writers (and artists in general) and what interest them. Yet this is also a very delicate line to walk because writers who are overtly political often fall out of fashion very quickly. So there has to be some kind of broad appeal that both reflects the culture but also which stands independent of it.

Díaz will do two events at Blue Met 2015: his main event at the Rialto Theater, in association with, Librairie Drawn & Quarterly, will see Díaz on stage with Montreal writer Heather O'Neill (The Girl Who Was Saturday Night). This is on Thursday, April 23 in the evening. Tickets are $10 or $8.50 if you buy them before April 8.  Tickets available online here (service fees may apply) or you can also buy them at the shop: Librairie Drawn & Quarterly, 211 Bernard Ouest, in Mile End.

His other event will be on Friday, April 24 at Librairie Las Américas (2075 St-Laurent). This event is in Spanish and will be an onstage discussion between Díaz and journalist Hector Tobar (author of Deep Down Dark: the Untold Story of 33 Men Buried in the Chilean Mine). Tickets here.

Blue Met's 2015 Grand Literary Prize winner: Nancy Huston

We've officially launched Blue Met 2015 and we couldn't be happier.

The big news is that our Grand Literary Prize winner for this year is Canadian/French writer, Nancy Huston. Huston has had one of the most unique careers in contemporary literature: from her beginnings on the prairies of Alberta, she has come to be regarded as one contemporary France's most prolific and respected writers.

Her most recent work, Bad Girl, is highly biographical (actually, it straddles some intersection between autobiography, biography and fiction) and a fascinating read. Her novel, Black Dance, is a novel that explores a life's work as the man in question lays dying in a hospital room. Written like a screenplay, the novel's full of voices from Milo's past as he considers what his life's work has meant.

I'm also a huge fan of Huston's The Goldberg Variations. Huston, an accomplished musician as well, is interested in riffing off the various iterations of these famous pieces. It's a really innovative and challenging work that I've read and re-read. Huston will be doing several events as part of the 2015 Blue Met Literary Festival:

Ultraviolet is a musical performance that Huston does with famed French guitarist, Claude Berthélémy. The musical tale is based on her short story of an Alberta family during the depression. She performs this piece on Thursday, April 23 at 5:30 pm at Hotel 10. The performance will be in French. Tickets are $10 and available here.

Also in French, Huston will be interviewed by Radio-Canada's Marie-Louise Arsenault on Friday, April 24 in the evening. This will be at Hotel 10. Tickets are $10 and available here. (Reminder: a 15% discount is offered if you buy before April 8).

Mainly in English, Huston will be awarded the 2015 Blue Metropolis Grand Literary Prize at the Grande Bibliothèque (475 Boul de Maisonneuve E ) with CBC's Paul Kennedy on Saturday, April 25 at 4:00 pm. Tickets are $15 and available here. This event, an annual tradition at the Grande Bibliothèque , sells out each year so get your tickets for this one soon. (Reminder: a 15% discount is offered if you buy before April 8).

Alberta prairie girl transforms into French intellectual superstar

Five Important Facts about Blue Met 2015!

So much to say about our 2015 Festival, which runs April 20 - 26, 2015 at Hotel 10 in downtown Montreal (in addition to several other venues around town).

Check out the entire program at our website.

Number one: 

We have literary stars: Nancy Huston, Junot Díaz, Patrick Chamoiseau, Russell Banks, André Aciman, Gene Luen Yang, Yasmina Khadra, Annharte, Don McKay, Marie Howe, Hector Tobar, David Usher, and many more!

Number two: 

Junot Diaz

We are more international than ever: Writers from Martinique, Trinidad, Germany, France, the USA, Mexico, Portugal, Argentina, Israel, Algeria and more! Events in English, French, Spanish, Italian, Hebrew, German and Portuguese!

Number three: 

We have some fun series on all kinds of literary topics: Series on Mile End, Generosity, Pan America, the Caribbean, Performigrations, France, a Film Series, Europe, Almemar (Jewish writers), Well-being and lots more!

Number four: 

2015:  big Festival in a record number of venues throughout Montreal: This year we are pleased to

Oonya Kempadoo

present well over 260 events at our venue hotel as well as at the Grande Bibliothèque, Rialto Theatre, Concordia University's De Sève Cinema, Librairie Las Américas, Goethe-Institut, Librairie Drawn & Quarterly, Lion d'Or, plus other bookstores throughout Greater Montreal (from Saint-Lambert on the South Shore to Rosemére on the North Shore and many places in between).

Number five:

Literature and much, much more! Literature is the core of what we do but this year we also have a Film Series, two dance performances, writing workshops, theatre, walking tours, history, and politics.

American poet, Marie Howe

French novelist, Adrien Bosc

André Aciman

Russell Banks

Nancy Huston

Gene Luen Yang

Blue Met 2015: Program almost revealed!

We launch our entire 2015 program on Tuesday morning at 11:00. Along with it, all the names of our prize-winners including:

Our Grand Literary Prize: past winners have included Richard Ford, Colm Tóibín, Joyce Carol Oates, Margaret Atwood, Carlos Fuentes, Norman Mailer, Dany Laferrière and many others, dating back to 1999. This is given to a distinguished writer of international stature for a body of work.

Auster, Byatt, Laferrière, Atwood, Mailer, Oates: who will join their ranks?

Our Premio Metropolis Azul is given for a work written in Spanish, English or French which shows some aspect of Hispanophone culture: past winners have included Nicaraguan writer Sergio Ramírez and Chicano US writer Luis Alberto Urrea.

Urrea: his sold out Grande Bibliotheque interview was a 2014 highlight! 

And Blue Met has two new prizes to add to this year's roster:

First Peoples Literary Prize: this is a prize aimed at shining the spotlight on the work of a First Nations, Métis, or Inuit writer of Canada.

Words to Change Prize: this prize is given to a writer whose work or works brings communities together. This might be intercultural communication in regards to ethnic communities, religious communities, linguistic communities or some other community.

In addition, we'll announce all our writers, some exciting series we are doing and some fun projects we are working on.

The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante

Being a big fan of Ferrante's work and having read all volumes available in her Naples series, I reached back into her early work and read The Days of Abandonment.

I had a very different relationship with this one: it's too dark for me, too personal, too bitter.

I heard John Waters say once that Elena Ferrante was one of his favorite "angry women writers" and having only read her Naples series then, I found this comment puzzling. The series isn't necessarily "angry" at all. Certainly there are moments of anger but the book is far more complex than anger.

But after reading The Days of Abandonment, I can see what he meant: the protagonist relates the story of a short period of time she went through after her husband left her. The opening line:

One April afternoon, right after lunch, my husband announced that he wanted to leave me.

Olga, the protagonist, then falls into a mental abyss of fear, anger, doubt and pain. It's like one furious rant from beginning to end.

I am so glad I started with her Naples series which, to my mind, is far more interesting.

I don't know why I couldn't relate to this novel as well: the anger? The specifics of the experience? Olga's experience feels somewhat dated since she seems to have no life or interest or friends outside of her family life. I don't know if that would be a common experience in contemporary Italy but it certainly doesn't seem like it would be that common in North America.

It's a short, zippy book that can be read in a couple of evenings. Though be prepared for lots of negativity!

All this leads to our very special Elena Ferrante Brunch which we are doing as part of Blue Met 2015. Lynne Robson, former correspondent for The National, hosts the brunch and it'll be a great opportunity for anyone who's a fan of Elena Ferrante (or would like to become a fan perhaps) to come, discuss her work, meet other fans. The event is on Saturday late morning, April 25. It costs $25 and includes breakfast. But move fast: our breakfast/brunch events usually sell out. Tickets go on sale a week from today and can be bought at La Vitrine.

Blue Met 2015: Gene Luen Yang in Montreal at Drawn & Quarterly

Comics artist Gene Luen Yang will be here in Montreal for Blue Met 2015 and on March 18 at 7pm, there's a great opportunity to read some of his work with other fans or newbies.

Librairie Drawn & Quarterly (211 Bernard Ouest in Mile End) will be doing a session of their very popular graphic novel book club with his work, Boxers & Saints. This is great news: whether you're a big fan of graphic novels/comics and want to be a part of one of the most revolutionary voices in the medium OR whether you're new to comics in its most contemporary iteration and want to become familiar with what kind of experience reading a comic/graphic novel is about, this book club is your chance.

The bookstore is offering a 20% discount on his work, Boxers & Saints, from now until March 18.

Boxers & Saints

This book, a two-volume piece which looks at the Boxer Rebellion from two very distinct (and competing) perspectives, and won a slew of awards for its blending of myth, history and character. Much has been written about the Boxer Rebellion in recent years and its entire place in Chinese and Western history is being rewritten in many key ways. But Yang's work is not a dry historical treatise: it's moving and funny and shows us how we are shaped by the history we are fed and raised with (the book tells the story of the Boxer Rebellion from two quite distinct perspectives).

As the New York Times puts it:

Both volumes show how everyday humiliations by foreigners bred fear and hatred in the Chinese. But Yang also portrays the missionaries' tireless efforts to spread Christian learning and help orphaned children. Though many Chinese found Christianity threatening (and with good cause - it stirred up social conflicts that killed millions), the faith liberated and strengthened others, like the heroine of "Saints," a fatherless, outcast girl whose nocturnal visits from the spirit of Joan of Arc help her imagine herself a Christian warrior.

Get the book (again, if you buy it at the Librairie Drawn & Quarterly, you'll receive 20% off!), then attend the session, then have your chance to meet Yang in person at Blue Met 2015: Yang will be in Montreal for events on Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25.

Drawn & Quarterly's book club session is scheduled for March 18 at 7pm in their shop at 211 Bernard Ouest in Mile End. Refreshments will be served.

Risky Whiskey: Lies, Whiskies and Other Dangers...

We've managed to crack some kind of code when it comes to fundraising events. The last few years we've been doing at least two per year: one in the middle of winter and one the week of the Festival.

Though they are an enormous amount of work, we almost always sell them out and manage to raise some funds for our educational programs and, of course, our Festival. And have a lot of fun in the process.

Last year we did Scotch & Fedoras which was a booming success (I still remember Jean-Francois Leduc dazzling the audience with a jazz-inspired reading of William T. Vollmann). And tonight we put on Risky Whiskey: Lies, Whiskies and other dangers....

There are literally two or three tickets left at most (they may be gone now because the last update I received was yesterday morning) so if you are a fan of whiskey, you might want to come check it out.

But it's only about the whiskey in part: the producer of the event is amazing: creative, intelligent, talented and, man, does he, Matt Zimbel, know what he's doing. And the host/emcee, too: Lyne Tremblay consistently wows our audience with her charm and originality.

Tonight it's going to be stories and anecdotes about whiskey drinking: the adventurous side of belting one on and whiskies from Japan, US and India. The show happens tonight at Monument National starting at 6pm. More information here.

It's not a marketing ploy, honestly: I do believe that the show is already sold out, though if this does sound like something that you might want to enjoy, contact us and see if it's possible to come warm your body with some of the best whiskies in the world while watching a funny and moving musical performance. We might be able to find another ticket or two... Nothing better to forget the winter blues than warming up in a friendly room full of whiskey lovers.

Blue Met 2015 : Stay Tuned!

Though we won't officially announce our lineup for another six weeks or so, we are putting the final touches on our 2015 program and it's looking great.

In addition to our 2015 series on Mile End, we have events on First Peoples Writing (and a new prize), a series on Generosity, events about mobility, movement and immigration as part of Performigrations, and a Film Series, as well. And this is just a sneak peak: we have writers confirmed from 15 countries including Germany, Algeria, Israel, the USA, Martinique, Trinidad & Tobago, France, Italy, Mexico and others.

Events on dance, cinema, musical performances, walking tours, expositions, and of course round-tables, interviews and readings.

We officially release all our 2015 at a press conference on March 24, 2015 where we'll announce the winners of our prizes:

The Blue Metropolis Grand Literary Prize: this is traditionally one of our biggest events and in the past we've given the prize to Richard Ford, Colm Toibin, Joyce Carol Oates, and many others. As in past year, we'll award the prize on-stage at the Grand Bibliotheque on Saturday, April 25 in the afternoon, followed by an interview.

The Premio Metropolis Azul for the third year will be awarded to a very popular and in-demand author who explores some aspect of the Hispanophone world in Spanish, English or French. We're expecting a full house for this event on Thursday, April 23 in the evening. Past winners of this award include Sergio Ramirez and Luis Alberto Urrea. Some names on the short list for this prize in 2015 include Sandra Cisneros, Isabelle Allende, and Luis Carlos Zafón.

Our two new prizes this year are for First Peoples Writing and the Words to Change Prize. The First Peoples Writing Prize will go to an Indigenous Canadian writer of great renowned and the Words to Change Award is a new prize which aims to value work that brings communities together. This year, we're happy to give the prize to an artist whose work is at once funny, moving and historically fascinating.

Blue Met 2015 promises to be one of our biggest and highest-profile Festivals in a few years.

The 2015 runs April 20 - 26 at Hotel 10 in downtown Montreal.

Montreal Book Clubs and Blue Met

On the news that Mark Zuckerberg has started his own online book club, I recalled that this year, we've put a great deal of efforts into recruiting local Montreal book clubs to get involved in the Festival.

What we are aiming to do is work with local Francophone and Anglophone book clubs, releasing

Zuckerberg makes room for reading

some non-official information about some of our writers early so that book clubs can do some pre-reading of Festival authors before they arrive. Then at the Festival, book club members will be given a big discount on all-Festival passes, free space to meet with their members to discuss books, and even the opportunity to meet the authors in question at a private function.

This is a great opportunity to meet some fascinating writers and to recruit new members for your book club.

As usual, our authors come from many countries around the world: the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Argentina, and many, many others. (In addition to, of course, Canada and Quebec).

If you have a book club and want to take advantage of all that we are offering local clubs this spring at Blue Met 2015 (April 20 - 26), send us details. Again, we will provide you with a very great deal on our all-Festival pass, space for your members, some online promotion for your club, "sneak previews" of authors scheduled for the Festival and, of course, some excellent books to read and discuss!

Hope to see you all at Blue Met 2015!

Summer comes to an end and Valeria Luiselli

For us, at any rate. Yes, there is another month of summer left, but we are back in the office today after having most of July off. Time to get started on our 2015 Festival and it's going to be a great one!

Over the past few weeks I've been reading a lot but one of the works which really stands out is Valeria Luiselli's Faces in the Crowd. Luiselli is one of Mexico's new generation of writers and her work is fascinating formally. The book tells the story of a young mother in Mexico City as she reflects back on her college years in New York City and Philadelphia, while at the same time, telling the story of a Mexican poet living in New York in the 1920s. The voices are both compelling and engaging but it's what happens as the novel moves along that threw me for a loop. I won't say more because it'll spoil the book for anyone who wants to read it but I'll leave it with the comment that this novel is one of the most innovative things I've read in a long long time.

If I didn't have such a long list of books on my list, I would have turned it over and re-read it immediately. I probably will re-read it later this fall. Luiselli's other novel, Sidewalks, is now at the top of my list of books I need to buy.

I love the little asides in Luiselli's book like this one:

Leave a life. Blow everything up. No, not everything: blow up the square meter you occupy among people. Or better still: leave empty chairs at the tables you once shared with friends, not metaphorically, but really, leave a chair, become a gap for your friends, allow the circle of silence around you to swell and fill with speculation. What few people understand is that you leave one life to start another.

Born in 1983, Luiselli grew up in South Africa and lives in New York City.

Blue Metropolis 2015 and some photos of 2014

So that's it. A few weeks of down time, and 2014 is crossed out. A new Festival is now in the works.

For 2015, the Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival takes place from April 20 to 26, 2015. 

We already have a number of authors confirmed and a few exciting projects in the works.

In the meantime, thanks to everyone for making 2014 a raging success. The 16th edition of Blue Met involved 233 events in 9 languages with the participation of over 100 authors from 15 countries. For Blue Met produced and co-produced events, as well as events produced by our partners, we maxed out at 32,000 visits for Festival-related events. Wow!

More importantly, we increased the attendance of hotel-based events by a whopping 35%!

Those are great numbers, people!

What I always say, though, is that we can never really rest too comfortably as the pressure is on to top 2014 by an even more successful 2015.

Now a few photos:

Writer David Foenkinos and Rene Homier-Roy in conversation at Librairie Gallimard

Zombies at Bedtime Stories, our sold out fundraiser, Lion d'Or

Metropolis Azul winner Luis Alberto Urrea in conversation with Writers & Company's Eleanor Wachtel, Grande Bibliotheque

Michael Enright & 2014 Blue Metropolis Grand Prize winner, Richard Ford, Grande Bibliotheque