Nearly 30,000 visitors for the 20e edition of Lire en pocket, in Gradignan, it is approximately the same figure as in 2023, and it completely suits Lionel Destremeau, curator of the event. The only French fair dedicated to paperback books cannot push the walls of the Quatre Saisons theater, and the approximately 200,000 euros in sales that it generates are enough to keep the exhibitors happy.
“The novelty,” he said, “is probably having a full house for two debates on migrations during Prehistory then on the phenomenon of refugees in the 19the century. These topics are connected to the news of 2024, and we see that people are looking for solid answers, not just the ready-made explanations that we hear on certain TV sets. This will surely be an area of reflection for the future. »
“A weekend outing”
More in-depth debates, but without giving up the “popular, family, festive” dimension attached to the show. This is due to the pocket book object, “less elitist in terms of its format and its price”, but also to the Mandavit park where the event takes place: “Without this green setting we would not have the same success. Reading in paperback has become a weekend outing in its own right. »
To meet Sylvain Tesson we sometimes had to queue from outside the Théâtre des Quatre Saisons.
Ch. L.
As for the authors, we noted that, rightly or wrongly suspected of being a “reactionary icon”, Sylvain Tesson remains an author whose signature can cause a queue all the way outside the Théâtre des Quatre Saisons. Big success also for Manon Fargeton, William Boyle, Andreï Kourkov (who came to talk about Ukraine, a current topic) or Camilla Grebe and Eva Björg-Aegisdottir, representatives of a Nordic thriller which is selling very well.
Ch. L.
The ink in the pen of Yasmina Khadra, sponsor of the 2024 show, was exhausted in two days due to so many signatures.
While Gabino Iglesias, Hispanic figure of the American noir novel, said he was delighted by his contact with the French public, “more intelligent than in the United States, and who does not blame you for talking about politics”. Or that the Algerian Yasmina Khadra, godfather of this 20e edition, had no more ink in his pen after two days of signing.
The four prizes of the 2024 edition
French Literature Prize: Avril Bénard, “To those who have lost everything” (I read)
Translated Literature Prize: Mona de Pracontal, “Sven’s Odyssey, by Nathaniel Ian Miller (I read)
Children’s Literature Prize: Jean-Luc Marcastel, “The Return of the Beast” (PKJ)
“Sud Ouest” prize for thriller: Morgan Audic, “Too many deaths in Wonderland” (LGF police)
