Villa Albertine San Francisco at Litquake 2025 with bestselling author Thomas Schlesser of “Mona’s Eyes”

Villa Albertine SF is pleased to receive the best-selling French author Thomas Schlesser, making his American debut with “The Eyes of Mona.” Join us for a reading and conversation about themes from his newest book, which is an inspiring journey across five centuries of art with 10-year-old Mona and her grandfather Henry. They have only fifty-two weeks to encounter all that is beautiful in the world before Mona loses her sight forever. From Botticelli to Basquiat, Mona will discover not only the power of art but also the meaning of generosity, doubt, melancholy, loss, and revolt.  
 
It’s no exaggeration to call Mona’s Eyes an international sensation. The novel by Thomas Schlesser is not only a #1 bestseller in his native France, Mona’s Eyes also captivated audiences worldwide, having been translated into 37 languages. Don’t miss this chance to hear him in discussion with critic and essayist Tausif Noor in the visually exquisite setting of the historic Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley.  

About Thomas Schlesser 
Thomas Schlesser is an art historian and the director of the Hartung-Bergman Foundation in Antibes, France. He teaches Art History at the École Polytechnique in Paris and is the author of several works of nonfiction about art, artists, and the relationship between art and politics in the 20th century, including Luminous Lives – a Biography of Anna‑Eva Bergman (trans. by Charles Penwarden, Eris Press). Mona’s Eyes (trans. by Hildegarde Serle, Europa Editions) is Schlesser’s second novel and his American debut. It has been translated into thirty-eight languages, including Braille. Schlesser is a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres and was awarded 2025’s Author of the Year by Livres Hebdo. He is the grandson of André Schlesser, known as Dadé, a well-known singer and cabaret performer of Roma origins who founded of the Cabaret L’Éclu