French writer Alexandre Jardin, who is visiting Quebec as guest of honor at the Outaouais Book Fair, firmly believes that we need to restore the love of books among young people.
“By sharing precious moments with children through reading, we manage to get them interested in books in the age of screens and social networks,” explains the 58-year-old author, who is also co-founder of the civic organization Lire et faire lire.
The concept of the organization, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, is simple: seniors aged 50 and over commit to reading books to children once a week. The aim is to create a reading habit in young children up to the age of 12.
“In pleasure!” insists the writer, who can never overemphasize the power of words when connected to the heart.
“Children need consideration. In my opinion, reading is great social medicine. I dream of creating nations of readers,” he says.
The author of around twenty novels from Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, is proud that the organization is still so vibrant in France (with almost 20,000 volunteers) and in Quebec.
“We have developed a program that is a vaccine against school failure, that allows young people to escape violence – because if we have words, we can express ourselves in words and not in gestures – and that is intended to be a major integration project. “ continues the man who wants to use his visit to the Outaouais Book Fair to recruit new volunteers in Quebec.
Projects
The heart of Alexandre Jardin is in Ontario. His family roots lie in Paris and his film projects in Vietnam. Because the love at first sight he felt from afar during the pandemic with a mystery woman from Ontario has turned into a serious relationship that now takes place between a house in France and another in Canada on the edge of the Great Lakes .
“This woman has a very important influence on me. We can already see it in the emotional density of my book Brothers [qui aborde le suicide de son frère]. I don't know anything more romantic than this woman. I hope that one day she will write,” confesses the passionate author who gave us the essential romance novels “The Zebra” and “Fanfan”.
Alexandre Jardin, who is currently writing, confirms that he will abandon the autofiction in which he has immersed himself for several years and return to his old loves: the romantic story.
“With a novel in the format of L'île des Gauchers, I dive back into true romanticism,” explains the man who sold more than 300,000 copies of this work in 1995.
Next January, the author will fly to Vietnam to shoot a film he wrote and based on a novel, but not his own. This “70-year saga” will take place in the cities of Hue, Da Nang and Hanoi. Alexandre Jardin conjures up a “great machine of real cinema and a great film”.
► The 45the The edition of the Outaouais Book Fair will take place from February 22nd to 25th at the Palais des congrès de Gatineau
► Would you like to volunteer with Read and Make People Read? You can reach the organization at the following address: [email protected]