Mental health the theme of 2021 Hong Kong International Literary Festival - expect a starry, diverse and surprising line-up of authors
- The Girl on the Train’s Paula Hawkins, Pulitzer Prize-winner Evan Osnos and Chinese sci-fi author Chen Qiufan are among 100 authors and speakers at the festival
- A sure-to-be-hot panel discussion will consider the costs and benefits of Hong Kong’s controversial 21-day coronavirus quarantine, the longest in the world
Seventy-four sessions. One hundred authors and speakers. Ten days of talks, readings, discussion, workshops and even guided tours.
The Hong Kong International Literary Festival (HKILF) is bigger and more robust than ever, which is no mean achievement after the disruptions of the past year.
Catherine Platt, the festival’s executive director, has placed the idea of revival and recovery centre stage in a programme organised around themes of wellness, community and trauma.
“We wanted to celebrate how people are surviving and thriving in difficult times, while also acknowledging the toll they have taken,” Platt says. “Mental health is a perfect theme for a literary festival, because of the healing power of stories, both telling our own and hearing or reading those of others.”
