Everyone Loves the (Leipzig Book) Fair

March 11, 2018

One of the cultural highlights of the year in Leipzig is the book fair. Every March, Germany’s second-largest book fair takes over the city for four days. In contrast to the big publishing, deal-oriented trade fairs in Frankfurt and London (in October and April, respectively), since German reunification Leipzig has been focused on interacting with readers, with over 200,000 visitors and nearly 2,500 publishers from 43 countries in 2017. In addition, there has been a parallel comic and manga convention since 2014 and attracting over 100,000 visitors last year. But the one thing that makes it truly unique is the program of readings and events called “Leipzig Liest” (Leipzig Reads) with 3,600 events at 550 locations across the city.

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Of course it hasn’t always been this way. The history of the Leipzig book fair reaches back into the 17th century and it quickly surpassed Frankfurt as the center of German-language publishing and remained at the top until World War II. There were over 2,000 publishers, printers, and other book-related businesses located in Leipzig at its zenith in 1914. During the Cold War era the book fair not only represented a meeting of East and West, it was one of the few places where East Germans had access to books printed in the West. Correspondingly, petty theft and sticky fingers was widespread. These days, it’s not unheard of to have copies “disappear” from the shelves, but now there are countless sales tables and better security.

Between interpreting at several panels, attending receptions, and participating in a poetry reading, I’ll have a full schedule in the coming week. However, I’m committed to reporting on the highlights as I experience them. I’ll get you started with my favorites to win the big book prize.


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