Explore French Literature at the French Book Club

Explore French Literature at the French Book Club

Join the Alexandria-Caen Sister City Committee and Old Town Books in celebrating French authors and literature! This special collaboration event is free and open to the public, but space is limited so please register here in advance. The French Book Club will take place Friday, August 21, 7 p.m., at the Lloyd House, 220 N. Washington Street, Alexandria.

This event is designed to encourage the exploration of non-Anglophone authors and books, especially those in the French diaspora. While buying the book at Old Town Books is not required to attend, doing so helps keep their free literary programming sustainable! By attending an Old Town Books event, you are agreeing to their code of conduct.

About the Book

The Most Secret Memory of Men holds the distinction of being the 2021 winner of the Prix Goncourt, France's top literary award. Written by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, the Goncourt's first Sub-Saharan African winner, and translated by Lara Vergnaud, in this coming-of-age novel, Diégane Latyr Faye, a young Senegalese writer in Paris, discovers a legendary book from the 1930s, The Labyrinth of Inhumanity. No one knows what became of its author, once hailed as the "Black Rimbaud," after the book caused a scandal. Enthralled by this mystery, Diégane decides to search for T. C. Elimane, going down a path that will force him to confront the great tragedies of history, from colonialism to the Holocaust.

The Most Secret Memory of Men is an astonishing novel about the choice between living and writing, and the desire to transcend the divide between Africa and the West. Above all, it is an ode to literature and its timelessness.

About the Office of Historic Alexandria

The Office of Historic Alexandria preserves and shares the history of the City of Alexandria with eight museums, historic sites, archives, archaeology, tours, exhibits, and public programs. Through powerful storytelling and confronting the City's past, Historic Alexandria enriches the present and inspires the future. We enhance the quality of life for residents and visitors and serve as a partner in the City's equity and inclusion initiatives. For more information, visit alexandriava.gov/Historic.

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Nicole Quinn at [email protected] or call 703.746.4554, Virginia Relay 711.

If you prefer communication in another language, free interpretation and translation services are available to you, please email [email protected] or call 703-746-3960.