Thank you!

Read My World 2021 was amazing! Many thanks to all the guests, the audience and our volunteers. We hope to see you all next year on the 10th (!) edition of the festival!

10th edition 1 - 3 september 2022!

Follow us on

Our co-creators

  • - Paris -

  • - Berlin -

  • - Berlin -

  • - Bruges -

Read My World Challenges Dutch and international authors to explore the borders between literature and (research) journalism.

Each year, the platform inspects a different region and asks local curators to introduce writers and poets who can tell us stories beyond the superficiality of day-to-day news. In this pandemic times, Europe is the region.

Grace Ly

Grace Ly is a writer and podcaster based in Paris, France. Her debut novel “Jeune fille modèle” (Model Teenager) (2018, Fayard) follows the quest of a young French woman of Chinese-Cambodian heritage for a sense of being and belonging in the so-called Chinatown in Paris. Her webseries “Ça reste entre nous” (Just between us) focuses on the diversity of paths, communities and common identities of French Asians along 6 episodes. The podcast “Kiffe ta race”, listed among best French podcasts of 2020 by Apple Podcasts, co-hosted with journalist, writer and director Rokhaya Diallo explores how race affects everyday life in France, an officially colorblind country (Binge audio, 2018-2020).

🗨 Follow Grace Ly on Twitter

Fatma Aydemir

Fatma Aydemir is a writer and journalist, based in Berlin. In 2017, her debut novel Ellbogen was published, won multiple literary awards and was adapted on many theatre stages. In 2019, she co-edited the essay collection Eure Heimat ist unser Albtraum with Hengameh Yaghoobifarah. Currently, she is working on her second novel Dschinns. Since 2012, she works as an editor for the daily newspaper taz.

🗨 Follow Fatma Aydemir on Twitter

Hengameh Yaghoobifarah

Hengameh Yaghoobifarah is a Berlin-based journalist and writer as well as a columnist for the German daily newspaper taz and an editor at Germany’s queer feminist Missy Magazine. In 2019, they co-published the essay collection „Eure Heimat ist unser Albtraum“ with Fatma Aydemir. 8 of the 14 essays got translated into English by Transit Journal. This year, their debut novel „Ministerium der Träume“ got published at Blumenbar.

🗨 Follow Hengameh Yaghoobifarah on Twitter

Dalilla Hermans

Dalilla Hermans was born in Rwanda and adopted. She grew up in the Kempen, lived in Antwerp and has now settled in Bruges. Dalilla has made it her mission to discuss and tackle racism and discrimination. She worked as an editor at Charlie, makes the interview series The Race Files, and wrote a book about her life path that was released by Manteau in May 2017: “Letter to Cooper and the World”. That year she reached the finals in ‘The smartest person in the world’ and she was the most googled person in Belgium.

In 2018 her children’s book “Brown Girl Magic”, with illustrations by Fatinha Ramos, was published and she contributed to “Zwart”. She wrote her first fiction book “Black Out” in 2019. In 2020 Dalilla’s first theater play ‘her (e)’ premiered at NTgent and her book ‘The last thing I want to say about Racism’ was released. Together with Ebissé Rouw she edited the collection of stories: ‘Afrolit’ Dalilla is a regular columnist at De Standaard and guest lector at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Currently she is working on a second play, a podcast, a new book and a documentary.

🗨 Follow Dalilla Hermans on Instagram

Videos

Grace Ly

Minorité modèle, virus et rêves d'enfants

Hengameh Yaghoobifarah

Hengameh Yaghoobifarah with Margarete Stokowski

Fatma Aydemir

Why I Love This Book - On her debut novel Ellebogen

Dalilla Hermans

Key Note Speechs University of Bruxelles

Who are our co-creators this year? You can watch them on videos here!

Essays Grace Ly and Dalilla Hermans
To the essays >>