A delegation of 10 prominent Australian writers will give French bibliophiles a taste of our unique literary culture at this year’s Comedie du Livre between Friday 19 and Sunday 21 May.

The Comedie Du Livre is one of the major European literary festivals, attracting around 100,000 visitors to venues in Montpellier and Paris last year.

The focus of this year’s festival will be Australian literature, and a delegation including Thomas Keneally, Robert Dessaix, Tim Flannery and Luke Davies will be attending.

Nine lectures and panel discussions in the Festival will focus on Australian writers, including the premiere French screening of Luke Davies’ film Candy. Photographic exhibitions and an installation by sculptor Christine O’Loughlin will also feature.

There will also be a symposium on Australian fiction and screen writing held at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France in Paris on Wednesday 17 May.

Since 1985 the festival has focused on a different national literary culture each year – with recently represented nations including Morocco, China, Egypt and Brazil.

The Australian delegation to the festival is being supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia-France Foundation.