At the heart of the three-day exhibition Manchestermodern: past present future, curated by Factory International and CHAOS SixtyNine with the support of CHANEL, a special edition of the Rendez-vous littéraires rue Cambon [Literary Rendezvous at Rue Cambon] was held at the Victoria Baths in Manchester.

In conversation with writer and critic Erica Wagner, author Jeanette Winterson, CHANEL ambassador and spokesperson Charlotte Casiraghi along with actress and CHANEL ambassador Kristen Stewart reveal what constitutes, according to them, the powers of literature. Together, they also talk about the books that are dear to them and the female literary figures who inspire them.

© 2023 by Cities of Literature. All rights reserved.

© 2023 Manchester Literature Festival. All rights reserved.

© Jeanette Winterson. All rights reserved.

Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, ©  Grove Press, 1997.

Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Vintage, 1997.

Jeanette Winterson, The Passion, © Grove Press, 1997. 

Jeanette Winterson, The Passion, Vintage, 1997.

Jeanette Winterson, Frankissstein: A Love Story, © Grove Press, 2019. 

Jeanette Winterson, Frankissstein: A Love Story, Vintage, 2019.

Jeanette Winterson, 12 Bytes, © Grove Press, 2021. 

Jeanette Winterson, 12 Bytes, Vintage, 2021.

Jeanette Winterson, Night Side of the River: Ghost Stories, ©  Grove Press, 2023.

Jeanette Winterson, Night Side of the River: Ghost Stories, Vintage, 2023.

©  UK Honours System.

©  University of Oxford. All rights reserved.

©  The University of Manchester.

© Toronto International Film Festival. All rights reserved.

Into the Wild, © Paramount, 2007. Courtesy of River Road Entertainment, LLC.

PANIC ROOM © 2002 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Courtesy of Columbia Pictures

Catherine Hardwicke, Bill Condon, Chris Weitz, David Slade, Twilight, © Summit Entertainment, 2008-2012. All rights reserved.

Pablo Larrain, Spencer, © Shoebox Films, 2021. A Fabula, Komplizen, Shoebox Films Production, 2021.

© Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All rights reserved.

© Académie des Césars. All rights reserved.

Olivier Assayas, Clouds of Sils Maria, © CG Cinéma, 2014.

Kristen Stewart, The Chronology of Water, © Scott Free Productions. All rights reserved. 

Jeanette Winterson, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, Vintage, 2012.

Jeanette Winterson, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, © Grove Press, 2012. 

Kate Zambreno, Heroines, © Semiotext(e), 2012.

© Theatre Royal Stratford East.

© ITN / Getty images.

Shelagh Delaney, A Taste of Honey, © Grove Press, 1994. 

Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own, 1929.

Virginia Woolf, Orlando, 1928.