At the First Nations Book Fair, Indigenous authors enjoy greater freedom than elsewhere by being able to take part in “experimental and magical” literary evenings, says general director Louis-Karl Picard-Sioui. The Duty spoke with him on the occasion of the twelfth edition, which opens Thursday in Quebec.
Friday evening will also be devoted to a literary performance entitled Rock the waters. This show, 100% “feminine”, will take place in the Multi room of the Méduse cooperative with the Anishinaabe artist Émilie Monnet, the Innue Soleil Launière and the Wendate Andrée Levesque Sioui. ” That’s not a show hyperlicked which is practiced for months. We put authors together, we work on the text, and then “go”, it’s live. There is a bit of a raw side, but it’s a magic that hits home,” says Mr. Picard-Sioui, creator from Wendake.
The latter specifies that the traditional round tables and signing sessions are still on the menu, but that it is important to think outside the box by also offering workshops and services. According to him, the Literary cabaret Kwahiatonhk! 2023 will offer a “moment of freedom” to those who participate on Saturday evening, such as Innu author Michel Jean and Inuit writer Norma Dunning. “You try something. Whether it works or not, it doesn’t matter. But I know it will work, it works all the time. »
For the performance of Thursday evening entitled Aimunit nititan / I live in words, Innu poet Joséphine Bacon — a regular at the First Nations Book Fair — will be paired with Alexis Vollant. The latter is a newcomer, also from Pessamit, on the North Shore. “Putting the two together, the younger one with the older one, for me, it’s a magical moment,” says Louis-Karl Picard-Sioui.
The multigenerational aspect of this annual gathering is one of its strong points, believes multidisciplinary artist Soleil Launière. “I really feel an opening. They told me: ‘Yes, bring your five-month-old little girl, we’ll have someone, they’ll be able to help you,'” Duty the one who participates in the event for the first time.
“Strong” first books
Mr. Picard-Sioui celebrates this year the return of “darlings” of the event, such as the multidisciplinary artist Natasha Kanapé Fontaine, with her collection of short stories Kanatuut. Michel Jean will also be on hand for his new novel Qimmik. The general director is also delighted with the presence of several emerging authors this year, such as Soleil Launière and the Innue Moira-Uashteskun Bacon, with her book Fly away, Mikun.
“We have strong first volumes. Because you know, an author’s first book, even the greatest, is not always very strong. You have to start somewhere,” he emphasizes.
The general director designates the first written work of Mme Launière, Akuteu, as one of the essentials of this new crop of writers. “This mixture of prose and poetry is very intimate, but it gets inside you. It’s extraordinarily beautiful,” he says about the book published in February 2023 by Éditions du Stir-Mage.
Growing up, I was not the outward stereotype of the Indigenous body that is put forward. But being indigenous has many faces and diverse facets.
The author, originally from Mashteuiatsh, in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, wanted to tell her own “truth” through these pages. “Growing up, I was not the outward stereotype of the Indigenous body that is put forward. But being indigenous has many faces and diverse facets. With AkuteuI needed to open the door to the little girl that I was and to tell my own stories,” relates the woman who now lives in Montreal.
Always necessary
According to Louis-Karl Picard-Sioui, there is no doubt that the First Nations Book Fair still has its relevance in society. “I think we still have something to say,” he maintains.
General literature festivals now make more room for indigenous authors, he recognizes. The event taking place from November 16 to 19 in Quebec City will, however, make it possible to introduce new writers who are not necessarily yet part of the literary circuits.
The one who refers to himself as the “ cheerleader of indigenous literatures” is thinking of changing his nickname, he says with a laugh. “It’s been 10 years, I’m starting to get tired of this title, I’m going to have to find a new one. I’m a bit of a matchmaker: both between the authors and the public, obviously, but also between the authors themselves, who get to know each other. »