Baltic countries to take part in London Book Fair together

Publishing expert Aida V. Dobkevičiūtė said the Baltic countries were traveling to the book fair held on April 10-12 to introduce the society with the great culture that exists on very small markets.

“We are traveling to the London Book Fair with beautiful and wealthy content that has been laid out in our language, which is special and that we want to present to the public. The English language is one of the most popular languages worldwide, and the accession of our literature to the language is significant and will have an extensive conservation value,” Dobkevičiūtė told journalists on Wednesday.

Culture Vice-Minister Gintautė Žemaitytė said that the English-speaking part of the society was not very open to translated literature, as it enjoyed a broad selection of English-language books, therefore, Lithuania’s participation in the fair together with its Baltic neighbors demonstrated a slightly different scale.

“It is very important that we are attending with Latvia and Estonia, as the countries have different experiences. (…) It was a certain challenge for our cooperation, as all three countries are individualist. (…) However, the best part is that we found a way of representing ourselves together,” said Žemaitytė.

The Baltic countries will take part in a special program Baltic Countries Market Focus, dedicated to presenting the market and publishing.

The three Baltic nations will be represented by 12 authors, four representing each country. The Lithuanian team will include writers Tomas Venclova, Alvydas Šlepikas, Undinė Radzevičiūtė and Kristina Sabaliauskaitė.

The fair will include 35 events divided in professional and cultural programs.