The 67th International Belgrade Book Fair will take place from October 19 to 27 at the “Belgrade Fair,” under the slogan “The Word is Free.”
Director of the “Belgrade Fair,” Danka Selić, announced that over 30,000 square meters of exhibition space will host 418 direct and the same number of indirect exhibitors. The official opening ceremony is scheduled for 6 p.m. on the first day of the fair in Hall 2, and the honor of opening the event has been given to poet, playwright, and screenwriter Milena Marković. In addition to the exhibition section, visitors can expect more than 500 programs in the promotion rooms of Hall 1A.
The School Day is on October 24, and on the same day, the traditional fair awards will be presented in the “Ivo Andrić” room. Family Days are October 21 and 22, and the fair will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Nataša Mihailović Vacić stated that this year, once again, Belgrade confirms its status as the cultural center of the entire region. The book fair not only connects book lovers, publishers, and authors but also plays a key role in the international promotion of our cultural scene and the potential of our city. “Culture and literature are the foundations of our identity, and I hope this fair will be a place for inspiration, learning, and exchange. The book is a universal medium of human thought and creativity, and in it, we always recognize traces of the essential: collective memory and the desire for a better understanding of the world,” Vacić said, and she emphasized that the Book Fair is the most important and oldest cultural event in the city.
Academician Dušan Kovačević, the president of the Committee of the International Belgrade Book Fair, highlighted that, for him personally, this event has always been a precious and incredibly beautiful occasion. He expressed his belief that this year’s fair will have more visitors, as last year’s was overshadowed by the two-year break due to the epidemic.
“For me, one of the most beautiful sights is seeing lines of young people in the halls of the fair, showing that books have not been sidelined compared to other media and the sort of hysteria surrounding them,” Kovačević said, inviting the fair’s audience to come this year as well.
This year’s guest country is the Republic of Cuba, and as the ambassador of this country, Leyde Rodríguez Hernández, stated, it is an exceptional honor for them. He reminded everyone that the two countries have over 120 years of diplomatic relations, and that the ties between the peoples are strong as well. The Cuban delegation will consist of eighteen people, and numerous translated works by Cuban authors will be presented at the fair.
Sanja Milić, the artistic director of the International Belgrade Book Fair, also spoke at the conference. The international program will feature guests such as Tony Parsons (United Kingdom), Nataša Rogelja (Slovenia), and David Unger (Guatemala, USA).
