(kus) Frankfurt, the city of literature, is home to the world's largest book fair and attracts the national and international book and media world every October. Trade visitors and people interested in literature meet and fill the literary life both on the fairgrounds and in the city.
"With the Book Fair, the Börsenverein, the National Library and as the home of many publishing houses, the city of Frankfurt is the German book city. When the Book Fair opens its doors on 17 October, a multitude of very different institutions will shape the literary event life in the city. The cultural programme around the Guest of Honour Flanders and the Netherlands includes readings, exhibitions, discussions and talks, right through to a symposium on the theme of architecture or philosophical dining together with Dutch and Flemish literary figures. Theatre, dance, performance and music events also play an important part in the multi-faceted programme," explains Head of Cultural Affairs Ina Hartwig.
"The literature programmes of the Cultural Office ‚Literatur im Römer' and the OPEN BOOKS reading festival also complement the comprehensive range of the literature calendar at Book Fair time. The free reading formats enjoy a great response from visitors. A broad, very diverse audience takes the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the literary novelties in the field of German-language fiction, non-fiction and international literature in a special atmosphere," Hartwig continues.
Flanders and the Netherlands are making their second appearance as Guest of Honour at the Book Fair. The artistic director of the Guest of Honour appearance is Bart Moeyaert, whom German readers know as a successful Flemish author of books for children and young people and winner of the German Youth Literature Prize ‚LUCHS'. He sees the second visit to Frankfurt as a chance to get to know Flanders and the Netherlands anew. According to the motto ‚Dit is wat we delen / This is what we share' he wants to share with the visitors from all over the world not only new novels, non-fiction or poetry but also impressions, experiences, art and culture. "We were the guest country for the first time in 1993 - this fact already says how important the Frankfurt Book Fair is for the literary world in Flanders and the Netherlands. When people say, 'We know you,' I always find that a pity. If people don't want to look twice, they miss out on a lot. It is the same now with the guest country appearance. Twenty-five years have passed, there are new names, new people, a new dynamic. It is like the sea that Flanders and the Netherlands share: Everything is in motion, there are new treasures on the beach,' Bart Moeyaert elaborates.
At the Mousonturm, the official guest country café has established itself as a meeting place for authors, artists and guests. Until the end of the book fair on 22 October, over three hundred new literary publications and translations can be browsed over Flemish beer, Dutch matjes and many other specialities. In the ‚Philosophical Table' series, Dutch and Flemish literary figures and philosophers will also be guests at the Mousonturm, exchanging food, drink and thoughts. On October 4, Marli Huijer will be talking about discipline, and on October 13, Chris de Stoop, about how we want to feed ourselves.
On the initiative of the Dutch Foundation for Literature and the Flemish Literature Fund, more than 400 events will take place throughout Germany as part of the Guest of Honour event.
Detailed information on the various programme offerings as well as additional visual material is available on the websites of the cultural institutions, on the homepages of the Guest of Honour <link http: www.frankfurt2016.com en _blank>
