German Book Office in New Delhi represented Germany at the European Union Guest of Honour Pavilion at the New Delhi World Book Fair 2018. The German stand saw a large number of visitors which included both German-reading and non-German reading audience. The Wall of Translations was a special attraction; it consisted of translations published by Indian and German publishers. Many said that it was a wonderful opportunity for them to be introduced to German literature. A large number of German-language speakers and learners explored the Contemporary German Book Collection to find the latest books from Germany under crime fiction, children’s literature, nature writing, writings on and by Karl Marx, and design books collection among various other genres.
The Globalocal Talk took place on 9 January 2018, between 12:00 to 1:30 PM at the Rights Table, on the 1st floor of Hall 7 A at Pragati Maidan. The Talk comprised of a panel discussion and a special session on Frankfurt Book Fair, and was followed by a networking lunch.
A team of panelists from Germany, France and India discussed about business and socio-economic responsibilities of publishers. Annemarie Blumenhagen, director of rights, Ullstein Buchverlage, Germany, Fabrice Piault, editor-in-chief of Livres Hebdo, France, Minakshi Thakur, commissioning editor of Westland, Manas Saika, managing director of Speaking Tiger Publishing Pvt. Ltd.and Shobhit Arya, the founder of Wisdom Tree were a part of the panel at the event. At the discussion, there was a unanimous agreement among the panellists about the fact that the publishers hold the freedom of expression and the freedom to publish.
The session from the Frankfurt book fair comprised of a discussion wherein Claudia Kaiser, vice president of business development was involved in a conversation with Judith Becqueriaux, president of the International Commission of the French Publishers Association and Judith Oriol of the Foreign Rights Department, Editions Gallimard, France.
The Frankfurt Book Fair was the first to start the concept of guest of honour at book fairs back in 1976 and the European Union was the guest of honour at the NDWBF 2017. The discussion revolved around the heavy participation that the French Union witnessed at the Frankfurt Book Fair after being adjudged as the guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2017. The discussion also focussed on new geographies that they had discovered and new partnerships forged through their participation, setting an example for other publishers.
