Children's Book Festival: ready for the Underwater Odyssey at Roudour, in Saint-Martin-des-Champs?

The Bay of Books association has never lived up to its name so well: “The Underwater Odyssey” is in fact the theme chosen this year for the Youth Book Festival, which the association has been bringing to life since 2011. This thirteenth edition will take place on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 November 2024, in Saint-Martin-des-Champs, at the Roudour cultural center. Which will transform for the occasion into a joyful aquatic bubble dedicated to “promoting reading, and promoting creation in this field, to the widest possible audience”. Here's a taste of what awaits fans of children's literature, from 3 months to 99 years old!

19 authors and illustrators facing their young audience

“The reason for being, the pretext of the festival since its creation, remind the volunteers, it is good to be able to meet the guests, talented authors and illustrators. » This year, there will be 19 of them, each with their own universe. New faces, like Régis Lejonc, self-taught narrator illustrator, who signs the festival poster, or Anaïs Vaugelade. Writers who are regulars at the festival, such as Thomas Scotto or the Brest screenwriter Bertrand Galic (co-author of the comic strip Nuit noire sur Brest, with Kris), but also the Breton-born Gégé Gwen (Botmeur), or the Brest author Anne-Gaëlle Morizur.

You can search through your library and find guest albums to have signed for them on the big day. What counts is the meeting!

All available to exchange easily with their young audience, without forgetting the magical moment of the dedication. The organizers insist on the fact that “this show is for everyone and free! There are books on sale, but you can rummage through your library and find guest albums to have signed for them on the big day. What counts is the meeting! It gives another dimension to the book.”

Spotlight on schoolchildren’s projects

This year, the team has worked hard to offer more meetings in advance in schools. “That’s 80 meetings, in 52 establishments, in 24 municipalities in the Pays de Morlaix”. A sign of the enthusiasm, “only half of the requests could be honored”. Three stages of restitution of these privileged exchanges “one author, one school” are planned with the students during the festival.

Artistic creation is not left out with the schools' exhibition, including three original projects to discover at the show. That of Brigit Ber around the cyanotype in Plougasnou; by Charles Vergnolle and his large cardboard Nautilus at Pleyber-Christ, and the large algae diorama by BTS Suscinio with Clémentine Page and Guillaume Castel. Poetic and snorkel-free diving guaranteed!

To ensure that no audience is forgotten, the “read differently” workshop will introduce tactile books adapted to the visually impaired. Not to mention the selection of books in Breton, the British-speaking guests and the bilingual show by Jean-Luc Roudaut, which attest to the festival's commitment to the Breton language.

Competition, talk and pre-festival cinema

Before the festival, the partner bookstores (Dialogue in Morlaix, L'ivresse des mots, in Lampaul-Guimiliau, and Livres in Room; Saint-Pol-de-Léon) launched a drawing competition a month ago (children and adults ) and a book competition. And in the ten participating media libraries, a digital game booklet already invites you to discover the guest albums in a different way.

Wednesday November 20, a talk in Breton, “from Australia to the Iroise Sea” with Yann Ildut Galliou will take place at Tempo, in Morlaix (at 8:30 p.m., free). Finally, the La Salamandre cinema has scheduled three special festival screenings (price €6/€4 for under 14s). With – this is new – a cinema snack of short films “Little tales under the ocean”, from 3 years old, Wednesday, at 3:30 p.m. Then, Friday evening, two screenings, from ten years old: “Children of the sea” (animation), at 6:30 p.m. and “Pacific Rim” (science fiction) at 8:45 p.m. So, are you ready for the Underwater Odyssey of the Bay of Books?