The Bologna Children’s Book Fair starts today. As we already mentioned, the two catalogues “Children’s Books from Bulgaria: Contemporary Writers and Artists” will be presented there. Before she left, we talked a little about the catalogue, Bologna and children’s books in Bulgaria with Val Stoeva. Here’s what she shared:
– On what principle are the participants in the catalog selected – writers and artists?
The leading factor in the selection of artists is the books published in Bulgarian, as well as their texts. First of all, we assess how interesting the text would be for the foreign audience (for whom the catalog is being prepared) – this is an important condition, because it is impossible to expect a book, re-purposed for the Bulgarian audience, in which there are too many elements specific to our culture, to arouse interest in foreigners. Through the book, we present both the writer and the artist, because the illustration is what first arouses the interest of publishers and agents unfamiliar with Bulgarian children's literature.
– For you personally, what were the most surprising works in the preparation of the catalog this year? Publish us something from the “kitchen”.
Actually, there are no surprises for me, because I have the responsibility to make the preliminary selection and give arguments regarding the proposed books before the council of experts of the National Center at the National Palace of Culture. But it might be interesting to mention that in this second catalogue a completely new category has been opened, “Past and Future”. In it, researchers can find Anton Staykov’s valuable research on Bulgarian primers (co-authored with Svoboda Tsekova) and on Bulgarian comics, and Maria Nalbantova’s impressive spatial book “White Bears for Black Days/Black Bears for White Days”. This category also includes the only Bulgarian book nominated twice for the most prestigious children’s literature award “Hans Christian Andersen” – “Tufo the Red-Haired Pirate” by Georgi Konstantinov. Unlike the Honorary List of the Andersen Award, in which the nominations are broadcast by the local section of IBBY, the selection of titles for the award is made by the international jury.
– Are there artists who are actively working in the field of illustration, but are not known in our country? How can these authors also present themselves?
Oh, I'm sure there are. And this is very sad! Our market, at least in my impressions, on the one hand holds on to a more outdated type of illustration, which limits a large part of the artists, because it contradicts new trends. On the other hand, a significant part of the buyers believe that children's books must have illustrations, but the artist's work is not perceived as a separate work, i.e. there must be illustrations, but the book must also be very cheap. And this inevitably forces our talented artists to work mainly with foreign publishing houses. There are few brave publishers who do not take into account the pressure of the market, but they cannot work with all talented artists.
For the worthy presentation of our artists, it is important to change the attitude of society towards children's books as a valuable product, and for publishers not to succumb to market sentiments so much. I was very impressed when I read Anton Staykov's research on primers some time ago - thanks to him I realized that the situation in our country will not change until the illustrations, which educate children's taste and even convey ideological messages, are not up to date with the new times.
- Are there any other artists who did not manage to get into both editions, i.e. should we expect a third catalog with new or recurring authors with new works?
Unfortunately, there are both artists and writers with their books who, for one reason or another, are not included. There are writers with very good texts, in which the illustrations and printing of the books are of extremely poor quality and this does not allow presentation to a foreign audience. Some wonderful books are out of print, i.e. it is impossible to physically present the book to foreign publishers. There are also cases in which the texts are specific to our culture, i.e. they will be incomprehensible to those for whom the catalog is intended. And we must not forget the fact that such publications are a very expensive investment, i.e. we have a volume that we have to fit into.
I sincerely admire the National Cultural Center at the National Palace of Culture for the initiative taken – indeed the decision to publish the catalog is brave, but also absolutely necessary. I really hope there will be subsequent editions and I even already have a list of books/authors that should be present.
– Is there interest in Bulgarian book production when presenting the catalog at international fairs? You were in Bologna last year.
At the meetings we held last year, there was definitely interest in books. We also showed paper copies of each edition, so the catalog was a starting point for the conversations.
Each market has its own specifics and demands: some tend to support bold black-and-white projects, others prefer books with full-color illustrations. There is also interest in texts, although most publishers are looking for picture books, which are still lacking in our country.
It is an undeniable fact that after the presentation of last year's edition, there has been a movement in terms of our artists entering foreign markets. I know that this year the more active publishers/writers have a number of meetings at the upcoming Children's Book Fair in Bologna and I will keep my fingers crossed for them to conclude contracts.
The problem here is not whether foreign publishers and agents are interested, but that for the most part our native copyright holders (publishers, authors) are rather unwilling to provide excerpts from their works because they do not have them prepared in foreign languages...
– What else can we expect in the program of the Children’s Books Foundation until the end of the year?
Our program is quite dynamic, and ideas sometimes come to us spontaneously while we meet with children and adults. What you can definitely expect from us is sending new nominations of Bulgarian artists for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award and for the White Ravens catalog of the Munich library; increased interest in the work of illustrators and preparation for the sixth edition of the “Magic Pearl” Award.
– What are your personal observations and thoughts regarding Bulgarian books, writers, artists – what do you agree with and what do you “argue” with in the bookstore?
I usually try to look objectively and imagine which works would “suit” which child, i.e. in general I try not to judge too harshly. I can forgive a layout that is not that good if the text is interesting. I can also agree that a book that deserves hardcovers can be released in paperback, because otherwise it will not reach the readers because of the price…
What I cannot forgive are books with spelling mistakes, without serious editorial work and with terrible illustrations. I am also tired of the circulation of the same classic works – some better, some worse adapted, but all the same in meaning. Children want to read, but books with bad texts, ugly illustrations and a terrible appearance will definitely not convince them that reading is valuable. And I will not talk about the development of aesthetic taste at all.
Photos: Milena Radeva
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