Bucharest, Mar 20 /Agerpres/ – The Ministry of Culture is organizing, as it does every year, Romania’s participation in the Leipzig Book Fair, ‘a place where Romanian literature and the local book market always have the chance of a more than consistent presence.’

According to a press release of the Ministry of Culture, the Romanian stand at the event taking place from March 27 to 30 will become this year a hub for book professionals from Central and South-Eastern Europe. The stand will be attended by 21 guests from Romania, the Republic of Moldova, Germany, Austria and Ukraine, and there will be launches of new translations of Romanian literature, as well as debates on current topics that bring together historians, journalists and writers from Romania, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Austria. There will also be a book exhibition featuring over 100 new titles from over 20 publishing houses in Romania and the Republic of Moldova, and visitors can enjoy a bookstore selling Romanian books.

The guests who will participate in the events organized by the Ministry of Culture during the four days of the fair are the authors: Mircea Cartarescu, Moni Stanila, Livia Stefan, Florin Irimia, Ioana Nicolaie, Dana Grigorcea, Traian Pop, the historians Armand Gosu and Oliver Jens Schmitt, translators Ernest Wichner, Alexandru Bulucz, Jan Cornelius, Manuela Klenke, Peter Groth, Georg Aescht and journalists Paula Erizanu and Maksym Butkevych, the press release states.

Moni Stanila and Livia Ltefan are coming to Leipzig to launch their poetry volumes (‘Mettalische Igel’ and ‘re:volver’) recently translated by Alexandru Bulucz and Manuela Klenke, respectively. Novelist Florin Irimia will also be present on the occasion of the publication of his short story collection, ‘Der Mann hinter dem Nebel,’ translated by Peter Groth. Mircea Cartarescu, a long-awaited presence in Leipzig, will begin his tour to promote his novel ‘Theodoros’, both at the fair and in the city.

There will also be discussions on literary themes, in which both Romanian and German authors will participate.

The geopolitical challenges in the Eastern European area will be addressed by two of the most renowned historians specializing in this area – Armand Gosu (University of Bucharest) and Oliver Jens Schmitt (University of Vienna) – in a discussion entitled, ‘The Fragility of Democracy in Eastern Europe. Today, Romania,’ moderated by Antje Contius (S.Fischer Stiftung). In the same context, journalist Paula Erizanu (Republic of Moldova) will have as guests Maksym Butkevych, Ukrainian journalist and war veteran, and historian Armand Gosu, for a dialogue entitled ‘The War That Changes Us.’

In recent years, the Ministry of Culture has increasingly emphasised exchanges between book professionals, establishing collaborations and partnerships with as many countries as possible, with the aim of promoting Romanian literature as intensively as possible, but also stimulating translations into Romanian of the literatures of surrounding countries. Thus, during the first two days of the Leipzig Book Fair, two sessions of the Book Exchange will take place: over the course of two hours, publishers and literary agents from Romania will meet with counterparts from Central and South-Eastern Europe and mutually promote titles from their own portfolios. Representatives of several publishing houses from Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Germany, Ukraine and Hungary have registered for the Book Fair.

Last but not least, the Ministry of Culture mentions the presence of the Diasporaciteste.eu bookstore at the stand, which will ensure the sale of Romanian books throughout the fair. Also, at the Romanian stand, the Pop Verlag publishing house will present its latest publications and organize literary discussions with its own guests.

This year, at the Leipzig Book Fair, the guest country is Norway, under the motto ‘Words move Worlds.’

Partners in this project are: the Romanian Cultural Institute through the National Book Centre, the Romanian Publishers Association, the Traduki Network, Goethe-Institut Ukraine, as well as the publishing houses that published the translations of the invited Romanian authors: Zsolnay Verlag, parasitenpresse, Edition fotoTAPETA, Dittrich Verlag. The event’s partners are the Romanian Cultural Institute, the National Book Centre, the Romanian Publishers Association, Traduki, Goethe-Institut Ukraine.