Georgian Literature to be Presented in Run-Up to Frankfurt Book Fair

Georgia is to be the 2018 Guest of Honor at the Frankfurt Book Fair, which runs from 10 to 14 October, and in anticipation, the Caucasus nation has launched a program of literary events and activities in German-speaking countries.

A total of 29 nations, including Germany, Austria and Switzerland, will welcome some of the most prestigious Georgian authors to meet book-lovers and to present their works at around 450 literary events.

Alongside the events and activities, Georgian literature will be showcased at 20 international festivals preluding the Book Fair. Music, film and art will be exhibited at these festivals, too. During March, Georgian writers will travel to seven cities with 22 translated titles being presented in the German language.

The first event of this program took place in January in Georgia, when the capital hosted around 15 international publishers, more than half from Germany, for a literary forum.

This was followed by a Georgian author being the first in history to pitch a book in the literary branch of the Berlin Film Festival in February.

Recently, a residency program was set up to house Georgian-to-German translators at the Writers’ House of Georgia as part of the program.

Three of them have been using the residency to bring three well-known Georgian works into their own language.

The next event in the program is a presentation to be held at the March Book Fair in Leipzig about the country’s participation in the Frankfurt book Fair and will be led by the Georgian National Book Center and the Ministry of Culture of Georgia. The event in Leipzig will see works by 23 Georgian writers presented.

Tom Day