Bonjour, Littérature! The third Francofest International Book Festival was held (photos)

Only a year after the launch of the first festival, Newmag became the Armenian representative of the French Goncourt Prize, with Armenia named the 39th country to establish its own National Jury. Last year, Francofest also joined the International Organization of La Francophonie, earning its status as an international festival.

After welcoming participants, Artak Aleksanyan, Head of Newmag Publishing House, shared how the idea was born.

“When we started this festival, it sounded like an experiment: a small Francophone event in Yerevan, where books and authors become a bridge between Armenia and the Francophone world.

 Today, that experiment has taken a very concrete form. The goal of Francofest is simple yet ambitious: to make Francophone literature in Armenia a living, heard, read, and discussed reality—not merely a list of translated names. For Newmag, books translated from French are not just titles in a series; they are a key part of our identity.

French and Francophone literature for us is not only a high artistic standard but also a culture of thinking, doubting, arguing, opening perspectives. And we want that culture to be felt in each discussion and meeting during the festival. When the idea of Francofest took shape three years ago, it seemed like a big step for a small country.

Today, with Goncourt Armenia already established, I feel the opposite: the emerging reading society is far larger than any project of ours—we are simply trying to walk alongside it, speeding up our steps a little.”

French Ambassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryOlivier Decottignies noted that he was delighted to see so many participants—especially young people—for the second year in a row.

“I would like to express special gratitude to Artak Aleksanyan and Newmag Publishing House. There is no literature without writers, without language—but also without publishers.

This publishing house, though not originally Francophone, attaches great importance to Francophone translations and made the Goncourt selection in Armenia a reality. It matters for French-speaking students, young people, and teachers—from Yerevan to border villages.”

For the second time, French philosopher, writer, and Goncourt Academy member Pascal Bruckner joined the festival. He also arrived in Armenia for the presentation of the Armenian edition of one of his books. Bruckner called the establishment of Goncourt Armenia a major development and spoke about this year’s laureate, Gaël Faye’s novel Jacaranda.

“The novel became a laureate not only in Armenia: it was selected in more than two dozen countries. And I chose this book myself. The Goncourt is a universal value. Debates within the Academy are quite heated. After the Nobel Prize, Goncourt is the most authoritative award in the world in terms of promoting French literature and language.

Readers may be decreasing worldwide, but I believe in new generations—I see how my grandchildren read. Literary awards guide readers. When entering a bookstore, faced with hundreds of books, awards help us choose. They offer a helping hand. Goncourt is a true gift for the Christmas season. This year as well, I will follow closely what the Armenian jury chooses. And if it coincides with my choice, I will be very happy.”

The festival’s international partners include the International Organization of La Francophonie, the Goncourt Academy, the French Embassy in Armenia, the French Institute, the Aznavour Foundation, and the French University in Armenia.

Rector Salva Nacuzy emphasized that even students not specializing in French literature or linguistics joined the jury with enthusiasm.

“YSU and Bryusov University students are experts in French literature, while our students—marketologists or specialists in other fields—also became jury members. They read and participated in this major literary event. Mr. Bruckner noted that people read less today, yet Armenians read a lot—and the success of Goncourt Armenia is also due to that Frenchness.”

The names of this year’s Goncourt Armenia National Jury members were announced during the festival. The eight nominated books they will read before announcing the winner in spring are already in Armenia.

The main sponsors of the festival are ACBA Bank and Cinema Star Armenia. The sponsors include Karas Wines and Maison Marom, which presented how business can become a platform for cultural dialogue. This year, the Maison Marom group joined Francofest for the first time.

Bella Vahramova, Commercial Director of the group, emphasized the natural harmony of the partnership.

“Our cooperation with the publishing house is not accidental. At the core of our group’s activities lies the dialogue between French and Armenian cultures. In today’s world, business is transforming, becoming a cultural value. The synthesis of Armenian and French is at the heart of what we do.”

For the first time, Gaël Faye’s Jacaranda, the winner of the Goncourt Armenia Prize, was presented to readers. Translator Taguhi Blbulyan and three jury members discussed the book’s choice, emphasizing its themes of genocide, memory, silence, and ancestral ties—deeply resonant for Armenian readers.

The festival also featured Nicolas Mathieu’s And Their Children After Them, winner of the 2018 Goncourt Prize—a novel about youth, industrial decline, and searching for one’s future, themes familiar to Armenians and relevant worldwide.

During the Armenian publication of Pascal Bruckner’s My Little Husband, Artak Aleksanyan spoke with the author, who described the book as an ode to feminine beauty and a humorous reflection on masculinity, modern family, societal roles, and the eternal father–son relationship.

The fourth book was Joel Dicker’s The Baltimore Book—a continuation of The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair, already beloved by Armenian readers.

The festival also hosted panel discussions on education, business, and theater. Director Hrach Keshishyan is staging a play based on Amélie Nothomb’s Bluebeard—a novel originally presented at the first Francofest. Before the premiere, Keshishyan, State Song Theater Director Mane Grigoryan, and actors Arsen Grigoryan and Narine Petrosyan shared insights about the upcoming production.

The Armenian–French “Zenith Academy” Foundation organized a discussion on “Lifelong Education in Armenia and France,” and the MAISON MAROM group of companies delivered a presentation on the inseparable link between business and culture.

Editor-in-chief of Newmag, Gnel Nalbandyan, described the festival as a large-scale campaign and marathon of Francophone literature and aesthetics.

“We enjoyed the ideas, knowledge, and creativity conveyed by the authors. They give us the keys to understanding what they write and why they write. This is how cultural dialogue happens.”

The festival concluded with remarks by Xavier Richard, Cultural and Cooperation Counselor of the French Embassy and Director of the French Institute in Armenia.

“Two of the four books published by Newmag are especially dear to me—Pascal Bruckner’s My Little Husband and Nicolas Mathieu’s And Their Children After Them. I warmly greet the translators who preserved the style, humor, and musicality of the originals. When a good work is translated, it needs a good translator and a committed publisher—like Newmag’s team. You spread literature. Francofest was simply wonderful.”

The festival also featured beautiful music. Young performers from the Artis Futura Foundation, laureates of international competitions, performed classical pieces, while the French melodies of Mavi Band and the Folk Quartet helped transform Francofest into a true celebration of literature, music, and art.