For its thirteenth edition, from October 10 to 12, FESTILITT 2025 is honored to welcome five French authors and five writers from across the Channel.

The French language resonates through the writing of Michel Jullien, author of short stories that depict lives as touching as they are humble. Aurélia Lassaque offers us a bilingual French-Occitan poetic performance, where her inspired imagination weaves through the beauty of people and the elements. A very different world — that of exile — will come alive through the words of Amadou Barry’s debut novel. Colette Magny, the volcanic force of French chanson, will be brought back to life through the voice of her niece, Périne Magny-Lecoy. As for Francis Grembert, he will draw on the delicacy of his literary style to tell us the remarkable story of two brothers.

On the British side, historian Hanna Diamond will reveal the role played by Josephine Baker during World War II as a secret agent  who knew? Lindsey Hilsum will speak about her career in journalism through a book that recounts the conflicts she has covered over the past forty years. The winner of the UK’s prestigious Booker Prize, Alan Hollinghurst, will be with us to present his latest novel “Our Evenings”. A debut novel by Gurnaik Johal traces the lives of people influenced by the Sarasvati, the sacred river of Punjab. And if you’re a fan of crime fiction, AA Dhand will unravel a gripping plot set in a deeply deprived city in northern England.

Throughout the weekend, “artist in residence” Rosendo Li will capture the energies around him and commit them live to paper.

And to close our “celebration of words”, a musical reading, born of the inventiveness of Mandy Govey and Irina Loperiol, will bring us all together.