The traditional Spring Book Bazaar has begun at the National Palace of Culture, which this year has been combined with the second edition of the Sofia International Literary Festival for Children and Youth. The official opening was the work of the Chairperson of the Bulgarian Book Association – Velizara Dobreva, who expressed her joy at the fact that the festival and the bazaar will be held simultaneously this year and promised on behalf of the Bulgarian Book Association that these two events will continue to work and develop together. She thanked all publishers, writers and illustrators who make such book festivals possible through their work.
The Mayor of Sofia – Yordanka Fandakova also welcomed the guests to the Palace of Culture, she noted that both events are part of the cultural program of the Sofia Municipality and emphasized that Sofia is “a reading city” with many and diverse events that take place throughout the year. “The time has come when bookstores are opening on the central and expensive streets and commercial establishments and boutiques are closing. It wasn’t long ago when the exact opposite was happening!”
The official ceremony ended with the opening of the exhibition of children’s book covers by illustrator Lyuben Zidarov. With his typical self-irony, he summarized that an author should not talk about his own works, because this means that either they cannot speak for themselves, or he has not managed to say anything.
The exhibition will be on view during the Spring Book Bazaar and will be a kind of backdrop to the program of the Sofia International Literary Festival for Children and Youth, which is taking place in the Marble Foyer.
Photos and text: Milena Radeva
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