The 75th Frankfurt Book Fair opened to an overwhelming response from leading lights of the world of literature, publishers, literary agents, global press et all. More than 4,200 exhibitors from around the world will be present at the Fair. It is the largest number of exhibitors since 2020. As the world’s largest book fair in terms of the number of publishing companies represented, the five-day event running through Oct. 22 will provide diverse programs catering to both trade professionals and the public. Apart from the book exhibition, the fair is hosting a number of events and knowledge sessions for all. Let’s have look at some of these.
Less words, More Data: Data Insights into the Booming Audiobook Market
The session “Less words, more data: Data insights into the booming audiobook market” deals with who the audio book listeners are, when and how they listen, and what books they cannot get enough of based on data from the Nordics and German markets. The speakers at the session are Niclas Sandin, CEO, BookBeat AB, Kathrin Rüstig, Managing Director, BookBeat GmbH. The audiobook market has been booming in many different countries during the last decade. In 2016 BookBeat launched in Sweden, and has after that expanded to Germany and 12 other European markets. According to BookBeat, so far, almost 100 million books have been listened to and read in BookBeat. Since their journey is just getting started, they want to share all of the insights they gathered and what they have learned so far with publishers so they can continue to create more books that audiobook listeners love.
The White Ravens 2023
Every year, the internationally recognized “The White Ravens” recommendation list presents outstanding new releases of the international children’s and youth book production of the year. 200 titles in around 40 languages and from more than 50 countries are selected annually by the editors of the International Youth Library and recommended in an annotated English-language catalogue. This year, at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the editors talked about their favourites from the current selection and presented books from the “White Ravens 2023”-list. Dr. Katja Wiebe (Specialist for Eastern European Children’s Literature), Jochen Weber (Head of Language Sections and Specialist for Children’s Literature in Iberian Languages), Oliver Ilan Schulz (Specialist for French-Language Children’s Literature), Dr. Ines Galling (Specialist for German-Language and Scandinavian Children’s Literature) spoke at the session about their recommendations. The “White Ravens” catalogue serves as a compass for publishers, libraries, literary festivals, international bookstores and agencies, as well as anyone interested in international children’s and youth books, through the vast children’s and youth book market and is a treasure trove for literary discoveries.
The book market in Europe 2022-2023: Main Data and Trends
In what is becoming a regular appointment at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the Federation of European Publishers presents the results of its annual statistical survey of the European book market. After an overview and some introductory remarks by the FEP President Ricardo Franco Levi, FEP’s Deputy Director and Economist Enrico Turrin will presented the detailed data collected by FEP on the turnover from book sales and on the titles published by European book publishers in 2022, also looking at the evolution of formats and trade channels, and outline how main markets have performed thus far in 2023. Speakers at this session included Ricardo Franco Levi (Federation of European Publishers, President), Enrico Turrin (Federation of European Publishers, Deputy Director).
From Inclusion to Innovation: How Accessibility is transforming the Book Value Chain
In recent years, accessibility has emerged as a critical factor in transforming the book value chain. The seminar “From Inclusion to Innovation: How Accessibility is transforming the Book Value Chain” explored the dynamic relationship between accessibility and innovation, examining how accessibility initiatives are reshaping the publishing industry and fostering inclusivity within the industry. Through a series of success stories, this seminar examines how accessibility-driven initiatives sparked innovation from content production to distribution and consumption. The seminar will be held in the Frankfurt Studio (Hall 40, room Europa) and was organized by Fondazione LIA in collaboration with the Frankfurt Book Fair, Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels, the Federation of European Publishers, the International Publishers Association, in the framework of Aldus UP, co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. Speakers at the seminar: Tobias Streitferdt (Holtzbrinck Buchverlage GmbH, Director Metadata & Systems), Porter Anderson (Publishing Perspectives, Editor in Chief ), Michael Tamblyn (Rakuten Hobo, President and Chief Executive Officer), Irene Enriques (Zanichelli Editore SpA , General Manager).
Saudi Arabia and Translating Cultures
This panel discussion will explore the intersection of translation and cultural studies, delving into the “cultural turn” that introduced the concept of translating cultures by considering both text and context as essential objects of study. Although it is still an emerging field, the translation of cultures already wields significant influence over translation theory and extends to domains within the humanities, social sciences, and international relations. The view of translation as not only a linguistic transfer but also a transformative cultural experience—as Homi Bhabha, Gayatri Spivak, and others have theorized it—was also central to the panel’s discussion. Examining the idea that translations can foster cultural dialogues between nations, the panel debated the implications of translating Saudi Arabia for Western audiences, examining the very translatability of the Kingdom on a global platform. The latter segment of this discussion addressed the different translation efforts in the last three decades along with the paradoxical scarcity of translated Saudi literary texts in comparison to the abundant flow of Western texts rendered in Arabic. The panel included Dr. Moneera Al-Ghadeer ( Saudi Scholar taught at Harvard University and Columbia University), Dr. Abdul Aziz Alsebail ( the secretary-general of King Faisal Prize).
The European Union Prize for Literature – an opportunity to discover new European voices
The audience will have the chance to be introduced to the 2023 winner of the EUPL: Martina Vidaic from Croatia and to be informed of the opportunities offered by the Prize. With authors coming from all corners of Europe, this gives a chance to publishers to get acquainted to new talents and bring to their readers new European voices. The presentation will be followed by a drink in presence of some of the nominated authors.
