Montreal Families

Festival features events for budding bookworms

March 30, 2016

It’s a festival that celebrates the written word – the Blue Metropolis Literary Festival will host nearly 120 family-friendly activities from April 11 to 17. Young literature lovers will be able to enjoy storytelling sessions, arts & crafts and various workshops.

More than 40 acclaimed authors, illustrators and storytellers, including local writers Monique Polak and Lydia Lukidis, will be participating in interactive and educational activities across the city in libraries, bookstores, cultural centres and coffee shops. Many of the events for children will be bilingual and free.

“Our goal is to bring citizens of different cultures together to enjoy reading and literature,” said William St-Hilaire, president of the Blue Metropolis Foundation. Here are some of the highlights of this year’s festival:

Tuesday, April 12 at 10 a.m. Montreal-based author and journalist Monique Polak will discuss her new detective book and hold a workshop for kids between the ages of 9 to 12 on how they can craft their own investigative tales. This takes place at Benny Library, 6400 Monkland Ave.
Tuesday, April 12 at 4 p.m. Local children’s writer Lydia Lukidis will be hosting an interactive hour about the world of fairytales for kids ages 6 to 10. Lukidis will present different traditional narratives, and then the participants will try their hand at coming up with their own stories. This workshop takes place at Westmount Library, 4574 Sherbrooke St. W.
Wednesday, April 13 at 2 p.m. Master the ins and outs of comedy writing and cartoons with Helaine Becker. This workshop is geared towards kids ages 6 and up and will also feature an improv portion. It takes place at École St-Germain d’Outremont, 46 Vincent d’Indy Ave.
Thursday, April 14 at 1:30 p.m. High school students will be presenting videos they created honouring the unsung heroes of the Second World War, including women, First Nations people and visible minorities. The event will feature Monique Polak, Jesse Strong and other speakers. It takes place at the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, 5151 Cote St. Catherine Rd.
Saturday, April 16 at 2 p.m. Kids ages 2 to 7 can learn about the many different Jewish traditions and holidays observed throughout the course of the year. This event takes place at Livres Babar in Pointe-Claire, 46 Ste. Anne Ave.