The 9th Karachi Literature Festival kicks off today

Book enthusiasts, get ready: the 9th annual Karachi Literature Festival kicks off today at the Beach Luxury Hotel.

KLF's inauguration will start at 5.30pm today, and though a a few talks are scheduled for this evening, the festivities will really get going on Saturday, when talks will begin at 11am and continue late into the evening.

The full schedule for KLF can be found here.

If your schedule doesn't allow you to spend the whole day at KLF, what are some highlights you shouldn't miss out on? Read below:

1) Kamila Shamsie's conversation about her latest novel Home Fire

Kamila Shamsie is scheduled to speak about her latest novel Home Fire at 11am on Saturday morning. Home Fire was longlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize and has garnered international acclaim. Centered around a British-Pakistani family torn apart by a conflicted past, this novel features themes that are very relevant today.

We expect to hear commentary about Pakistani writing in English, the Paksitani diaspora in Britain and much more.

2) A panel discussion on the #MeToo movement

A timely conversation if there ever was one, this panel features prominent personalities like transgender activist Kami Choudhry and journalist/politician/academic Nafisa Shah. We're looking forward to insights about how the #MeToo movement is or isn't relevant to Pakistan, how we can better understand the movements aims and limitation, and much more.

3) Sunil Shankar's short play 'Chup' will be featured too

Directed by Sunil Shankar and co-written by him and Fawad Khan, this short play deals with issues that can't openly be discussed -- like missing persons, enforced disappearances and more.

It will be staged on Saturday at 4.45pm.

4) A session on the relationship between fiction and politics

On Sunday morning Kishwar Naheed, Arfa Syeda Zehra, Qaisra Shahraz and more will gather to discuss the impact of fiction on politics and vice versa. We're looking forward to a conversation that'll hopefully address the depoliticization of literature in Pakistan, the divide between English and Urdu reading audiences, and more.

5) A welcome focus on Sindhi literature

Friday will feature a Sindhi Mushairo with Imdad Hussaini, Aasi Zamini, Ayaz Gul, Haleem Baghi, Sahar Imdad and more.

This will be followed on Sunday by a talk titled 'The literary traditions of Sindh, featuring Jami Chandio ad Syed Sardar Shah.

6) A focus on poetry spanning the new and the old

From a session that features Zia Mohyeddin reading Shakespeare to a session that investigates slam poetry, KLF attempts to cover vast ground in the world of verse.

Another session titled 'The other muse: poetry in English' will grapple with the state of English poetry in Pakistan.