6 – 12 March 2023. When I took on the role of festival manager at the Hong Kong International Literary Festival in September 2022, little did I realise what an enriching, yet challenging life experience it would be.
In six fast and furious short months, our small team – working always in collaboration with a vast network of similarly-minded book lovers and readers – pulled together a literary extravaganza for the first fully in-person literary festival in Hong Kong since the pandemic started. The stars were fully aligned as we played host to literary luminaries, children’s authors, historians, journalists, essayists, poets and illustrators: Shehan Karunatilaka, Emily St John Mandel, Pico Iyer, Dung Kai Cheung, Wong Yi, Jonathan Kaufman, Candy Gourlay, David A. Robertson, Christopher Cheng and Petr Horacek, to name but a few. Our ambitious programme unfolded on the same week as the Young Readers Festival, making it a literary celebration to remember for everyone involved: speakers, moderators, sponsors, partners, volunteers and of course, our wonderful audiences. Highlights included moderating two sessions (one with Pico Iyer, and another with Pico, Emily St John Mandel and Jim Hildebrandt) as family and friends sat in the audience, and working with the most tenacious, committed and passionate team of book lovers on the planet.
Maureen Tai 