MINSK, 14 January (BelTA) - The 27th edition of the Minsk International Book Fair will be held under the slogan "More Than Books". The event will take place in the administrative complex at 14 Pobediteley Avenue in Minsk from 6 February to 10 February, Belarus Deputy Information Minister Igor Buzovsky told the media, BelTA has learned.
"The mission of the fair is to promote books, authors and love of reading. The event will feature more than 300 exhibitors and will cover the area of about 3,000 square meters. We got applications from about 35 countries and we expect about 60,000 visitors this year," the deputy minister said.
According to him, the slogan "More Than Books" is a stimulating component for the organizers and participants of the book forum. “The exhibition is not just a place where authors, writers, publishers meet in order to communicate. It is also a platform to discuss the development of the book industry. Therefore, we tried to take the best out of what had been gained over the past years and add new realities, i.e. book promotion communication,” Igor Buzovsky added.
In his words, the 26th Minsk International Book Fair opens the world calendar of book forums. Next will be the Vilnius Book Fair, scheduled for 21-24 February. “We hope that the start given in Minsk will be memorable and useful for professionals of this industry. Attention to the book word and the book itself remains unchanged. The latest polls conducted on international platforms say that the interest in the e-book begins to fall. Printed books are gradually restoring their popularity,” said the deputy minister.
The book forum will be themed around the Year of Native Land, the 2nd European Games, the Belarusian literature classics' anniversaries and memorable historical dates of Belarus.
For the first time, the fair will be held not only at the exhibition grounds but also in bookstores, libraries and museums. Plans are in place to organize literary excursions, poetry routes and thematic seminars, to discuss world trends in book design, crowdfunding, literary criticism and blogging, work in social networks and other issues of the book industry.
The exhibition will also feature meetings with authors, publishers, and artists, and also book presentations, roundtables, autograph sessions and master classes.
The organizers of the Minsk International Book Fair are the Information Ministry, Minsk City Hall and the Belarusian Writers' Union. Co-organizers are the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Education Ministry, the Culture Ministry, Belkniga and Makbel book selling companies.
