Festival

by Chris Tomasini

While a student at the University of Toronto, Peter decides to spend a summer working abroad, finding a job at a hotel in London, England. Already feeling that he is living his life in bus stations and temporary apartments, the time he spends in London is ghostly - a goodbye waiting to happen. When he returns to Toronto, the people he knew in London echo within him, especially Anne, who more than anyone, slipped behind his defenses and challenged him to hold her, and hold life, as though it meant something. Set in 1990s London and Toronto, Festival is about living your life, instead of watching it slip away.

134 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 2015

About the author

Chris Tomasini lives in Ontario, Canada.
He is the author of Festival, a coming-of-age novella set in London, England, and Toronto, Canada. He is also the author of Close Your Eyes: A Fairy Tale, which won the 2022 Historical-Fantasy award from the Historical Fiction Company. Chris's book Within This Darkness, book one in the teen Douro-Zamość trilogy, was shortlisted for the 2025 Whistler Independent Book Awards in the fiction category.

In the 1990s Chris taught English as a Second Language and had stops in England, Poland, and Japan. Since 2000, Chris has worked in bookstores, publishing, and in libraries.

A chaser of sunrises, Chris can often be found on a bicycle or in a kayak, pointing a camera towards the rising sun.

IG @chrisfindsthelight

Reviews

[Trio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Tomasini has a magical way with words, and an incredible ability to build a story arc. If you haven't read either Festival or Close Your Eyes, please add both of these marvelous stories to your tbr shelf.

Festival is the coming of age tale of Peter, a young guy who spends his summer working in a boutique hotel in London. Of course the adventures Peter has, the friends he makes, impacts his life. But what sets Festival apart from other stories like it, is the clever way Chris Tomasini structures the novel.

Moving between memories of London and being back in his home in Toronto, Peter gradually comes to realize his current state of mind.

Festival is filled with vivid descriptions of both London and Toronto, and set in the 1990's. I enjoyed every moment of this poignant, tender, beautifully written novel.

[Summer Song · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Festival" is an inspiring and thought-provoking story written by Chris Tomasini. I enjoyed reading about both settings of 1990s Toronto and 1990s London. Each location in this book is beautifully described along with smooth and detailed writing, which will make you feel as if you are really there: walking under a canopy of leaves in Hyde Park, enjoying friendship, wine, and couscous at a Moroccan restaurant in London, running through the Trafalgar Square fountains, observing Toronto's Friday night street life, or camping at a small lake in Canada quietly watching the sunrise. The author has made a great narrative choice in switching between both settings! After all, this story is told from Peter's memories. This narrative choice heightens the dreamlike quality and non-chronological nature, which often accompanies memory. The characters are very well-written and three-dimensional, along with personalities, struggles, and difficulties of their own. This is a story that will resonate with anyone and everyone, no matter what stage of life they are in. There are so many thoughts and feelings expressed in this book which will give you plenty of cause to think and feel deeply. It was great getting to know each character and seeing how they perceive and live life in their very different ways. It was also interesting to see how they interact with each other and the people around them. There is something important to learn from each character in this book. The speed of the plot was great and the writing style is smooth and clear, along with beautiful imagery and poetic prose. As with the author's second book "Close Your Eyes," I am absolutely dazzled. This book is unique, beautiful, thought-provoking, and inspiring. "Festival" is a gem of a book and is most definitely a five-star read. I cannot recommend this book highly enough! Thank you very much to the author Chris Tomasini, for providing me with a physical copy of "Festival" to read and review honestly.

[Hannah Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Festival is written through the eyes of Peter, a student from Toronto, who spent a summer working as a porter in a London hotel, before returning to continue his studies in Canada.
Whilst in London, Peter makes many "connections" with individuals but none of these, with the exception of his friend Anne, are anything other than fleeting acquaintances.
Via a combination of letter-writing and heart-achingly, honest dialogue we learn about Peter's inner struggles to make sense of his world and his future.
This is a beautifully written book. The characterisation is powerful and the imagery often took my breath away. I found myself re-reading sentences several times and then putting in markers to allow me to return to them in the days ahead.
I strongly recommend this book.

[Matea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read Close your eyes and I loved it, but there's no words to describe this book. It has 126 pages and you'll enjoy every single one of them. You'll feel like you're in book, you'll travel through London and Toronto. You'll learn to live. I won't spoil you anything, but here's a quote from it: "Hold onto someone sometimes. It makes you feel bigger than you are, like you've touched something universal and timeless simply by touching another person." This is a definitely a book you'll return to, in 10, 20, maybe even 30 years and it will always welcome you back.

[Casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ll start out by saying that Chris Tomasini has a lovely way with words. Some of the descriptions in this book were absolutely beautiful and painted the picture perfectly for the reader. Some of the dialogue between characters was well written and nicely paced.

As for my 2 star rating … I have to be honest and say that I had difficulty following the story. Perhaps this is in part due to the way the book was broken up (instead of chapters, there are page breaks on almost every page throughout the book). The perspective/setting jumped back and forth at an inconsistent pace. I also struggled to find the conflict in the book.

I think that adding some more conflict would support the story and add to the length, which is quite short. Overall, I got the impression that Festival was written as an autobiography opposed to a work of fiction.

[Shreya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never have I ever read a book by Chris Tomasini that hasn't had an effect on me....in an absolutely good way.

The day I read, Close Your Eyes was the day I knew I would never pass up on an opportunity to read Chris' books.

Festival is very different from anything I've ever read before. There's no haste in the story, no rush, nowhere to be. Point is, it's a slow story. And the character? a realistic Canadian guy in his 20s questioning in life and well, wading through it subtly. Peter is a great, nuanced character. He's very realistic, simple and is struggling in the exact same way all of us do - as in being 'what am I doing?' occasionally (we don't know either, Peter. we just do it)

It's a short book. But one that could end up changing the way you view life. It's poetic. Sensible. A literary masterpiece that I'm not sure how you guys don't know about?

What did I feel while reading this book? well that's a tough question because... I don't know. I was too caught up in Peter's life. His behaviour. Him going about his day. Him thinking of his family in Canada while he's working the summer in Britain. Anyone who has lived in their twenties away from their family would relate to this book.

I can't wait to read Tomasini's other books. Within the Darkness is next.

[Hees · Rating 5 out of 5]

Festival was an interesting read. There was no obvious plot but it was intriguing to see the main character Peter going through the motions of life. Peter spends the summer in England as a Canadian university student. I could imagine myself as him, wanting the summer to not end so that I don't have to go back to his routine life. It also made me think about what home means. Is it the place we are in, is it where we were before, etc.? There were vivid descriptions of the feelings, sights, smells, and other senses that Peter was experiencing which was quite neat. I recommend giving this unique book a shot!

[Nushh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book anyone in their 20s or living away from home should definitely read. I personally related to a lot of it being a 21 y/o hehe. The scene from which the book got its name was partly amazing cuz I sort of understood what was going on but was also a bit lost because many of the places including the place where the festival scene happens I'm not familiar with and I didn't want to Google every single one breaking the flow of the story so in that sense it was a bit confusing for me but everything else was amazing. I think festival would be exceptional with whole pages of hd pictures of every single location mentioned.
The book has some of the best goddamn lines. I've highlighted some lines every third page. And usually I'm too lazy to stop reading and highlight lines to read later. You know someone is a good writer when they can articulate something you have felt in a way that it makes more sense to you reading it than it did when you were feeling/living it.
I felt for Tracy the way I've been feeling recently for my parents. I like how I end up feeling connected to so many side characters in Chris's books.
Overall an amazing read.<3

[Martha F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dedicated coming-of-age novel about what it means to grow up in a city far from home. It is set in the Cool Britannia of the 1990s, and reading it really feels like living on the streets of London.
If you've been a kid who wished they could get away and love the City of ouble-decker buses, you can't not read it.

[Clarissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this on goodreads and my view is all from only me.

Based in Toronto and England. Overall a good read. Not a chapter but spread apart. A man in both areas with stories attached. No love...but love. A bit confusing to start the read but that ends fast. Overall a good story about a man who can't just sit somewhere long. But works and meets people. Descriptive story which wasn't bad at all. I loved that I knew all spots mentioned in Toronto areas.
Id recommend it to read but wont read again myself. Glad I won it and glad I read it right away.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so beautifully narrated by the the author. It’s a “memoir” of the main character Peter. He splits his time between London and Toronto. He is trying to find the meaning of his life with the friends he meets along the way. This author has a way of writing that makes you want to read everything he’s ever written. He has 2 books under his belt and I can’t wait to read his many future books.

[Jenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

🇨🇦
This is a really beautifully written and thought provoking novel. it's a coming of age story about Peter and his summer spent working in London. His connections, his work and the parallels he draws between his homes. Living abroad currently, this book made me think a lot about how much I've changed since moving and how much I miss Canada. I really loved how this story was pieced together.

[Jasmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me back to my London days and then back to Canada. Descriptive and quick enjoyable read.