Festival Quartier du Livre

An 11th edition under the sign of happiness

From May 27 to June 3, 2026, the Festival Quartier du Livre celebrates its ten years of existence with an 11th edition organized around the theme « Happiness, how are you doing? ». A question that runs through the eight-day program: round table « Happiness as resistance to hatred » with Tania de Montaigne (LICRA), conference « Henri Bergson and happiness » with Aurélien Gallèpe, screening of Agnès Varda's film Le Bonheur, conference « Matisse, painter of the Joy of Living », meeting « Who will show us happiness? » at the Bagagerie Cœur du Cinq, or the workshop « Illustrate your lucky book » with Chung-Hing Gosselin.

Yasmina Khadra, patron of the 2026 edition

Algerian novelist Yasmina Khadra, author of The Swallows of Kabul and What the Day Owes the Night, sponsors this 11th edition. He has just published Le Prieur de Bethléem (Flammarion) and participates in several key events: a literary coffee presentation on Tuesday, June 2 at 3 PM at the Salle des Mariages of the Mairie du 5e, then the grand closing debate with high school students on « the accessibility of literature to all » on Wednesday, June 3 at 5:30 PM at the Institut National des Jeunes Sourds.

A pop-up bookstore in the heart of the Mairie du 5e

From Wednesday, May 27 to Wednesday, June 3, 2026, from 11 AM to 6 PM (closed on Monday, June 1), the Agora Jacqueline de Romilly at the Mairie du 5e once again hosts the Librairie Éphémère. Independent booksellers, publishing houses, and authors gather there every afternoon for book signings and meetings in an intimate atmosphere. Among the announced guests: Rebecca Benhamou, Tonino Benacquista, Gilles Paris, Céline Curiol, and many others.

More than 130 events throughout the Latin Quarter

The festival relies on its usual network of emblematic venues: Buffon, L'Heure Joyeuse, Rainer-Maria Rilke, Sainte-Barbe libraries, Bibliothèque Littéraire Jacques Doucet, Bibliothèque des Littératures Policières (BiLiPo), Bibliothèque Mohammed Arkoun; Shakespeare and Company, Le Renard Doré, Le rêve du papillon, L'Autre Livre, Présence Africaine, La Tanière Bleue, Le Petit Ruisseau, L'Amie Prodigieuse, Pedone, Eyrolles, du Québec, Plan Cœur bookstores; but also the Théâtre Le Mouffetard (Centre national de la Marionnette), the Institut du Monde Arabe, the Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré, the Studio des Ursulines, the Centre Culturel Irlandais, the Panthéon, the Maison de la Recherche Sorbonne Nouvelle, or the Arènes de Lutèce.

Two literary prizes awarded during the festival

As every year, the festival awards the Prize for Contemporary History Book and Comic Strip, presented at the Panthéon on Tuesday, June 2 at 7 PM.

An exhibition extended until June 6

The archival photographic exhibition Pierre Jamet, celebrating 90 years of paid holidays, is visible at the Mairie du 5e from May 27 to June 6, 2026 (10 AM - 6 PM).

Wednesday, May 27, 2026 — Opening

• 10 AM - 12 PM — Collective writing workshop (Résidence Mouffetard)
• 11 AM — Guided tour of the Library of the Institut du Monde Arabe
• 11 AM — Workshop « Draw your Yokai » with Doria Kriouche (Librairie Le Renard Doré, young audience)
• 2 PM - 3 PM — Visits to the writers' offices of Henri Bergson, Michel Leiris, Paul Valéry (Bibliothèque Littéraire Jacques Doucet)
• 2:15 PM — Reading and screening « The Scent of Carrots » (Cinéma Studio des Ursulines, from 4 years old)
• 5 PM — Conference « Henri Bergson and happiness » with Aurélien Gallèpe (Maison de la Recherche Sorbonne Nouvelle)
• 6 PM — Conference « Jean Paulhan, the book drunkard » with Jean-Marc Dos Santos and Claire Paulhan (Arènes de Lutèce)
• 8 PM — Opening Ceremony with the Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré Symphony Orchestra (Salle des Fêtes, Mairie du 5e)

Thursday, May 28, 2026

• 11 AM — Book-Club Cop1 around Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist (Salle Pierrotet, Mairie du 5e)
• 2 PM — Literary walk « In the footsteps of Marie Curie » (departure Place de la Sorbonne)
• 3 PM — Walk « Happiness according to the Marquise de Sévigné » (15 bis rue Buffon)
• 5 PM — Conference with Amélia Matar on screens (Bibliothèque L'Heure Joyeuse)
• 6:30 PM — Round table of Peruvian authors: Mónica Cárdenas Moreno, Claudia Salazar Jiménez, Rocio Ferreira, Ethel Barja (Maison de la Vie Associative et Citoyenne)
• 7 PM — Meeting with Edward Chislom (Librairie Shakespeare and Company)
• 7:30 PM — Cinema Masterclass with Jan Kounen (Cinéma Le Grand Action)
• 8 PM — Screening of Agnès Varda's film Le Bonheur (Espace Saint-Michel)

Friday, May 29, 2026

• 10 AM - 6 PM — Open house and writing workshops at Les Mots school
• 2 PM - 3 PM — Visits to writers' offices (Bibliothèque Littéraire Jacques Doucet)
• 2:30 PM — Theater workshop « Happiness Scenes » (Résidence Mouffetard)
• 5 PM - 11 PM — Festive evening « Césure celebrates its Neighbors! » with concerts (Césure)
• 6 PM — Meeting with magistrate Vincent Vigneau (Salle des Mariages, Mairie du 5e)
• 7 PM — Round table « What future for Europe? » with Sylvain Kahn (Librairie Les Traversées)
• 7 PM — Screening of Georges Perec's film A Man Asleep (Studio des Ursulines)
• 8:30 PM — Jazz audition, Antonio Catalfamo's Workshops (Auditorium Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré)
• 9:30 PM — Collective bike ride (departure FAC, 28 rue des Fossés Saint-Bernard)

Saturday, May 30, 2026

• 10 AM - 6 PM — Youth book collection by Bibliothèque Sans Frontières (Place du Panthéon)
• 10 AM - 12 PM — « Dictation for all » with Orthodidacte (Salle Pierrotet, Mairie du 5e)
• 11 AM - 8 PM — Short Story Market, Pippa bookstore and TriArtis editions (rue Malebranche)
• 11 AM — Round table « Old age and madness » with Marie Derrien, Anatole Le Bras, Elsa Génard (rue de Bazeilles, Traversées du Savoir)
• 2:30 PM - 10 PM — Reading Night at the Centre Culturel Irlandais (Forum des Instituts Culturels Étrangers)
• 3 PM — Illustrated conference « Panorama of puppet arts » + student performances (Théâtre Le Mouffetard)
• 3 PM — Round table « The independence of justice » with Fabrice Arfi (Mediapart), Vincent Sizaire, Léna Dufeutrelle (rue de Bazeilles)
• 4 PM — Comic book meeting with cartoonist Matz (Librairie L'Amie Prodigieuse)
• 4:30 PM — « Poetry Saturday »: bilingual Arabic/French readings with music (Institut du Monde Arabe)
• 5 PM — Round table « The Spanish Civil War, 90 years » with Célia Kernen, Pierre Salmon, Mercedes Yusta, Stéphane Michonneau (Bibliothèque Mohammed Arkoun)
• 6 PM — Screening of La Fortuna di essere donna by Alessandro Blasetti (Salle des Fêtes, Mairie du 5e)
• 6 PM — Stroll « The Burial of Annoyances » (departure Église Saint-Médard)
• 7 PM - 8 PM — Concert « La Fontaine in music » (voice and harp, Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré)

Sunday, May 31, 2026

• 10 AM - 6 PM — Youth book collection Bibliothèque Sans Frontières (Place du Panthéon)
• 11 AM - 8 PM — Short Story Market (rue Malebranche)
• 11 AM — Round table « Happiness as resistance to hatred » with Tania de Montaigne, Mikhaël Allouche, Ana Waalder, Faraj Alexandre Rifaï (Salle des Mariages, Mairie du 5e, organized by LICRA)
• 11 AM — Round table « Media concentration » with Françoise Paugam, Jean Perès (Acrimed), Jean-Yves Mollier, Benoît Huet (rue de Bazeilles)
• 12 PM - 9 PM — Festive day « Pour Kça Bouge! »: picnic, entertainment, concerts (Quai Saint-Bernard – Jardin Tino Rossi)
• 2 PM — Workshop « Illustrate your lucky book » with Chung-Hing Gosselin (Salle Pierrotet)
• 2:30 PM - 5 PM — Watercolor workshop « Water and Colors » (Atelier des Feuillantines)
• 4 PM — Meeting « Exiling oneself from exile » with Amir Parsa (rue de l'Arbalète, between Caractères editions and Galerie Khal)
• 4:30 PM — Round table « The Iran War: is it time to take stock? » with Etienne Gernelle, Iris Farkhondeh, Elias Roussel (Mairie du 5e, LICRA)
• 5 PM - 11 PM — « Poetry on Seine »: festive evening on the Nanna barge (Port Montebello)

Monday, June 1, 2026

• Pop-up Bookstore closed. Reduced program — see quartierdulivre.fr/programmation-jours-6/

Tuesday, June 2, 2026

• 3 PM — Literary coffee with Yasmina Khadra about Le Prieur de Bethléem (Salle des Mariages, Mairie du 5e)
• 3 PM — Conference « Marguerite Yourcenar, a look at Japan » with Laure de Chantal and François Chausson (Librairie Le rêve du papillon)
• 5 PM - 7 PM — Meeting « The Good: edification, example and scandal » with Mathilde Bertrand and Paolo Tortonese (Maison de la Recherche Sorbonne Nouvelle)
• 6 PM — Conference « Remaking the world: economy, society, creation » with Franck Fischbach and Judith Michalet (Salle Pierrotet)
• 6 PM — Jazz concert by the Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré around Marcus Malte's crime novel (Bibliothèque des Littératures Policières)
• 6:30 PM — Quebecois poetic reading: Denise Desautels, Louise Dupré, Diane Regimbald (Librairie du Québec)
• 7 PM — Awarding of the Prize for Contemporary History Book and Comic Strip (Panthéon)
• 7 PM — Meeting with Meena Kandasamy (Shakespeare and Company)
• 7 PM — Conference « Matisse, painter of the Joy of Living » with Eric Parmentier (Bibliothèque L'Heure Joyeuse)

Wednesday, June 3, 2026 — Closing

• 11 AM - 12 PM — Guided tour of the Library of the Institut du Monde Arabe
• 2 PM — Workshop « Manga Creation » with Capetta (Librairie Le Renard Doré)
• 3 PM — Haiku workshop with Dominique Chipot (Librairie Le rêve du papillon)
• 3 PM - 5 PM — Workshop « The art of kamishibai » (in front of the Bibliothèque L'Heure Joyeuse, from 5 years old)
• 5:30 PM — Grand debate with Yasmina Khadra and high school students on « the accessibility of literature to all » (Institut National des Jeunes Sourds)
• 5:30 PM - 9:30 PM — Masterclass by trombonist Glenn Ferris and the jazz department (Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré)
• 6 PM — Meeting with Anne-Cécile Robert (Librairie Pedone)
• 7 PM — Round table « How to publish on Marc Bloch »: Valérie Hannin, Alya Aglan, Yann Potin, Florian Mazel, Guillaume Calafat, Matis Bloch (Sorbonne, Université Paris I)
• 8 PM — Festival Closing Ceremony by students of the Rognoni School of Performing Arts (Salle des Fêtes, Mairie du 5e)

Full program and registration on quartierdulivre.fr and my.weezevent.com/festival-quartier-du-livre-2026 (registration required for events at the town hall).

• 11th edition on the theme « Happiness, how are you doing? »
• Yasmina Khadra as patron: literary coffee on June 2 and grand closing debate with high school students on June 3
• More than 130 free events over 8 days in the Latin Quarter
• Pop-up Bookstore at the Mairie du 5e, Agora Jacqueline de Romilly (May 27-June 3, 11 AM - 6 PM, except Monday)
• Opening Ceremony on May 27 at 8 PM with the Conservatoire Gabriel Fauré Symphony Orchestra
• Short Story Market rue Malebranche on Saturday, May 30 and Sunday, May 31
• Reading Night at the Centre Culturel Irlandais on Saturday, May 30
• « Poetry on Seine » evening on the Nanna barge on Sunday, May 31
• Awarding of the Prize for Contemporary History Book and Comic Strip at the Panthéon on June 2
• Pierre Jamet photo exhibition (90 years of paid holidays) until June 6 at the Mairie du 5e

Access

The festival takes place throughout the 5th arrondissement of Paris, with a main welcome point at the Mairie du 5e, 21 place du Panthéon, 75005 Paris.

• By metro: Maubert-Mutualité (line 10), Cardinal Lemoine (line 10), Place Monge (line 7), Censier-Daubenton (line 7).
• By RER: Luxembourg (line B), Saint-Michel — Notre-Dame (lines B and C).
• By bus: Lines 21, 27, 38, 47, 63, 82, 84, 85, 86, 87, 89.

Prices

Free admission to all events.

Program

Full program available at quartierdulivre.fr.