FRANKFURT: Canada recently concluded its successful two years as the Guest of Honour Country at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Participating in the ceremonial handover of the Guest of Honour scroll, Canadian representatives exchanged the Frankfurt Book Fair scroll with representatives from the incoming Guest of Honour country, Spain.
Canada was represented by Caroline Fortin, President of CanadaFBM2021, a consortium created by the Canadian Publishing Industry to plan and coordinate the literary program.
Spain was represented by María José Gálvez, Spanish Ministry of Culture and Sport, Director General of Books and Promotion of Reading.
The Handover Ceremony included a discussion between two distinguished authors, Canadian Dany Laferrière and Spain’s Manuel Vilas. During the event, Canada thanked Spain, as well as the 2023 Guest of Honour Slovenia and the 2024 Guest of Honour Italy, for their support in extending Canada’s Guest of Honour year.
This year brought with it a round of firsts, including the very first virtual Guest of Honour pavilion, which provided guests the opportunity to experience the Canada pavilion from the comfort of their own home.
The Fair also served as the first official state visit by Her Excellency Mary Simon, the Governor General of Canada, who spoke at the opening ceremony on October 19. With Canadian creators taking centre stage, interest in Canadianproduced content saw a rise.
At more than 350 titles, the number of Canadian books translated into German surpassed expectations. In addition, 58 Canadian authors and illustrators participated virtually and in person at the Frankfurt Book Fair. More information can be found at canadafbm2021.com/eventcalendar.