Entre nos mains literature and resistance at Salon du livre 2026

Tashi Farmilo

Entre nos mains (In Our Hands), a message that highlights the unifying and transformative power of literature, sets the tone for the 47th Outaouais Book Fair, taking place February 19 to 22 at the Palais des congrès on 50 Maisonneuve Blvd in Gatineau.

This year’s edition invites readers, writers, publishers, educators, and families to explore how storytelling fosters empathy, resistance, and imagination. Over four days, the fair will offer more than 100 literary events, including author talks, roundtables, performances, workshops, and family programming.

The lineup includes several internationally acclaimed guests. Haitian-Canadian author Dany Laferrière will serve as honorary president and present his new book L’obsession du rouge. French-Tunisian writer Ouissem Belgacem will speak about Adieu ma honte and Yamma, while Icelandic novelist Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir will present her latest work DJ Bambi. All three will appear on stage at the Palais des congrès during scheduled main events between February 19 and 22.

A powerful evening of poetry, Tearings Towards the Future, is scheduled for February 20 at 9:30 pm at Bar le Minotaure in Gatineau. The lineup includes Jessica Gagnon, Jonathan Roy, Christian Roy, and Joseph Edgar, performing a piece subtitled Bites of My Stripped Rage, which explores revolt and care as dual responses to injustice.

A screening of the film Mille secrets mille dangers will take place on February 21 at 7:00 pm at the Ciné+ Theatre in the Canadian Museum of History, followed by a conversation with author Alain Farah and director Philippe Falardeau, who adapted the novel for the screen. That same evening, a beer-and-book pairing event will unfold at Pub À la Dérive in Pointe-Gatineau. Authors Francis Ouellette, Heather O’Neill, and others will guide the audience through literary tastings matched with Quebec microbrews starting at 7:00 pm.

Public programming at Place Yves-Thériault inside the Palais includes a conference-brunch hosted by Université du Québec en Outaouais on February 21, with columnist Marie-Andrée Chouinard, followed by sessions featuring David Rivest, Alain Olivier, and Alexandre Fontaine Rousseau on forest ecology, nonfiction, and translation in comics.

Two major outreach programs kick off earlier in the week. From February 17 to 18, the Desjardins Youth Tours will bring authors like Webster, Caroline Décoste, and Hugo G. L’Éclair into schools across Gatineau. The Literary Caravans will reach communities including Pontiac, Papineau, and Vallée-de-la-Gatineau, with authors such as Mathieu Fortin, Stéphanie Boyer, and Jonathan Reynold.

On-site at the Palais, children can enjoy performances by favourites such as Ari Cui Cui, Barbada, Simon Boulerice, Carine Paquin, and Fééli Tout. To accommodate families, a special promotion on February 20 offers free admission for one accompanying adult per child under 12, between 9:00 - 5:00 pm, in recognition of a school PD day in the region.

The Arc-en-ciel Book Club, focused on queer literature for teens aged 12 to 17, will host a special in-person session at the fair to discuss Kev Lambert’s Les sentiers de neige. A follow-up roundtable will explore the role of community book clubs in building inclusion and awareness.

Most events at the fair are included with the purchase of a bracelet-pass, which grants full access to programming inside the Palais des congrès and provides free public transit on the STO network during the event dates. General admission is $16, with reduced rates for students, seniors, and youth. Children under 12 enter free, and families can purchase a group pass at a discounted rate. Full ticketing details are available at slo.qc.ca/billetterie.

“Books and their authors represent powerful allies, informing us, cultivating hope and resilience within us, allowing us to empathize with others, and enabling us to imagine and build a society that better reflects our collective aspirations,” said Lisanne Rheault-Leblanc, co-director of the Outaouais Book Fair.