THE BOOK FAIR OPENS IN BELGRADE, PLACE WHERE WRITERS LIVE

BELGRADE, OCTOBER 19 /SRNA/ - The International Belgrade Book Fair opened this evening at the Belgrade Fair. For nine days, the event will feature more than 400 exhibitors from both the country and abroad, including publishers and writers, among them participants from Republika Srpska.

This year's fair, organized under the slogan "The Word is Free," was officially opened by Milena Marković, an award-winning poet, playwright, and screenwriter, and a professor at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade. "What would life be without words? It wouldn’t exist. What would become of all of us if there were no stories? We wouldn't exist," Marković said. Reflecting on her childhood and encounters with books, she recalled that her mother used to say that books go to the book fair "to sleep under the dome." "This is a place where writers live. They will write the stories that will help us all endure and grow. Read books," Marković urged. The opening was attended by Serbian ministers, including Nemanja Starović, Minister of Labor, Employment, Veteran and Social Policy; Dejan Ristić, Minister of Information; and Nikola Selaković, Minister of Culture. Also present were Mlađen Cicović, Head of the Republika Srpska Representative Office in Serbia, and the renowned writer and director Emir Kusturica. At the opening ceremony, Miguel Barnet, a storyteller, poet, and anthropologist from Cuba - the guest of honor - addressed the audience. Barnet has been awarded numerous national and international literary prizes for his extensive body of work, including books, poems, and chronicles. Republika Srpska is showcasing 134 titles across 47 events at the Fair, with its official presentation set for Monday, October 21, at 12:00 in the ceremonial hall of the Administrative Building of the Belgrade Fair. The Fair will feature publishers from BiH, Belarus, Greece, Italy, Iran, the Congo, Morocco, Germany, Romania, Russia, Tunisia, Turkey, and Ukraine /for the first time/, as well as Croatia and Montenegro. Among the notable guests are Tony Parsons from the United Kingdom, Nataša Rogelja from Slovenia, and David Unger /from Guatemala/USA/. The largest domestic and numerous international publishers and authors will be featured at the fair, where visitors will have the opportunity to purchase books at fair prices and attend book promotions and panels covering a variety of topics. As part of the 67th International Belgrade Book Fair, several awards will be presented, including Publisher of the Year, Publishing Endeavor of the Year, Children's Book of the Year, Award for Publishers from the Serbian Diaspora and Region, Special Recognition for Contributions in the Field of Science, Special Recognition for a Publisher, Book, or Comic Book, the "Bogdan Kršić" Award for the Most Beautiful Book, Award for the Most Beautiful Children's Book, and Special Recognition for a Young Designer. Various program segments will be held at the fair, including "A Thousand Whys" focusing on children's and young adult literature, "Songs of the Sun" dedicated to poetry, "Atlas Bound by the Sky," showcasing Serbian writers and international guests, and the segment "A Suspicious Character," which will address complex topics ranging from literature to the misuse of artificial intelligence in translation or the internet in literary criticism. On Thursday, October 24, the fair will host the traditional School Day, aimed at organized visits by students, teachers, school librarians, and professors. Additionally, Family Day will take place on Monday and Tuesday, October 21 and 22. Simultaneously with the Belgrade Book Fair, the 53rd Education and Teaching Aids Fair will also take place. The Book Fair will be open daily from 10:00 to 20:00. Tickets are priced at 250 dinars for group visits, 350 dinars for individual visits, 1,000 dinars for Family Day, and 2,000 dinars for access to all days of the fair.