Abdulrazak Gurnah, Mohsin Hamid, Irene Vallejo, Serhij Zhadan, Ian Kershaw, Leïla Slimani, Donna Leon, Alok Vaid-Menon, Andrea Wulf, Luisa Neubauer and many more at Frankfurter Buchmesse

Government funding supports book and publishing sector / Literary Agents & Scouts Centre (LitAg) fully booked / Tickets available for #fbm22 / TikTok and Spotify to participate / Guest of Honour: Spain / Focus on Ukraine / International Translation Centre / Awareness Team on site

Frankfurt, 17 August 2022 - With exhibitors from over 80 countries and acclaimed authors from around the world, the 74th Frankfurter Buchmesse (19–23 October 2022) will once again serve as the international book and publishing industry’s benchmark event. “As its leading trade fair, Frankfurter Buchmesse has a monopoly position within the book industry. Yet it is much more than just a place for doing business: the fair stands for diversity, for plurality and against any kind of discrimination. These basic values are visible in this year’s programme of events: many of our guests are writers whose books seek answers to current political and social issues,” says Juergen Boos, Director of Frankfurter Buchmesse. Renowned author Mohsin Hamid will deliver one of the keynote addresses at the fair’s Opening Press Conference (Tuesday, 18 October 2022, 11:00 am). In his just-published book “The Last White Man” (published in Germany by DuMont), he creates a scenario in which the community of an unnamed town is surreally confronted with its fears and prejudices. Numerous authors will present their new books at the Frankfurt Pavilion, the fair’s stage for cultural and political content curated by the book fair, including Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah, climate activist Luisa Neubauer, Spanish essayist Irene Vallejo, and Ukrainian writer Serhij Zhadan, this year’s winner of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade. The full programme of the Frankfurt Pavilion will be announced shortly. “As we plan the book fair, we are taking into account that the COVID situation might change this autumn. We are in contact with the relevant authorities and will meet all hygiene and safety requirements that apply in October,” adds Boos.

Major players from the international publishing industry will be present in Frankfurt

All of the major publishing groups have registered to attend Frankfurter Buchmesse: the major multinational publishing groups based in the US and UK, including Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Scholastic, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Ingram, Taylor & Francis and Springer Nature. Moreover, the streaming service Spotify and the video platform TikTok will also be represented at the book fair. Around 70 country stands will welcome visitors in Frankfurt. Asian book markets are back in Frankfurt again, including China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. The major European book markets – France, Italy, Norway, Poland – will also be represented at large collective stands. Among the numerous exhibitors from Germany are the Munich-based Penguin Random House publishing group, German-language publishers Holtzbrinck and Bonnier, and the Ganske Group, along with Aufbau, C.H. Beck, Diogenes, DuMont, Klett-Cotta, Hanser and Suhrkamp, as well as the Kurt Wolff Stiftung’s publishing divisions. The 456 tables at the Literary Agents & Scouts Centre (LitAg) are fully booked. This year, the centre will be located in Hall 4.2. The hall plan provides an overview of Frankfurter Buchmesse 2022: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/visit/hall-plan(opens in a new window). All exhibitors are listed in the fair’s Exhibitor Directory: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/visit/exhibitor-directory(opens in a new window)

Guest of Honour: Spain

Spain will be this year’s Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse under the motto “Creatividad Desbordante – Spilling Creativity.” Exactly 31 years after the country’s first appearance as Guest of Honour in 1991, its presence in Frankfurt will focus on topics such as multilingualism and the importance of the Spanish language as a bridge to Latin America. Over the five days of the fair, the interactive Guest of Honour Pavilion with its two stages (Forum, Level 1) will shed light on Spain’s rich and vibrant literary and cultural landscape, providing space for exciting encounters with 200 Spanish organisations and individuals. Titles can still be submitted for the international exhibition “Books on... Spain”, which is organised by Frankfurter Buchmesse and traditionally shown at the Guest of Honour Pavilion. The current list of new publications in German, which Frankfurter Buchmesse compiles for each of its Guest of Honour countries, includes 186 titles by authors from Spain or publications about Spain. The new titles are being released by over 90 German-language publishers. Further information on the Guest of Honour programme is available here: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/highlights/guest-honour(opens in a new window)

Focus on Ukraine

Ukrainian book publishers and institutions will exhibit at a 100-square-meter collective stand (Hall 4.0), which will have its own stage. The extensive programme at the stand examines the current situation of the Ukrainian publishing industry. The joint Ukrainian stand is made possible by Frankfurter Buchmesse’s cooperation with the Goethe Institute Ukraine and the Ukrainian Book Institute. In addition, the book fair is organising a workshop for publishers from Central and Eastern Europe with a focus on Ukraine with funding from the German Federal Foreign Office. The participants from Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and the Czech Republic can expect a varied professional programme and a professional dialogue across national borders. On the Saturday of the fair, numerous Ukrainian authors will be part of a programme with a special focus on Ukraine in the Frankfurt Pavilion. This programme is organised by the German Federal Agency for Civic Education in cooperation with Frankfurter Buchmesse; more information will follow shortly.

NEUSTART KULTUR stimulus programme aids book and publishing industry

Germany’s minister for Culture and the Media, Claudia Roth, is once again providing funding from the federal government’s NEUSTART KULTUR programme in support of Frankfurter Buchmesse (19–23 October 2022). The funding is intended to further strengthen the book and publishing industry and makes it possible to hold the sector’s most important event even as the pandemic’s far-reaching effects continue to be felt. Exhibitors who have booked an individual stand or are participating in a collective stand are eligible for assistance. The fee reduction is up to 30 percent, depending on the size of the stand. Exhibitors with smaller stands will benefit in particular, a measure meant to ensure a diverse range of participants is present at the book fair. Book fair exhibitors will receive more detailed information shortly.

Translate. Transfer. Transform. – International Translation Centre (Hall 4.0)

With the motto “Translate. Transfer. Transform.”, Frankfurter Buchmesse is putting a special focus on translation and on the important role of translators as mediators between cultures and languages. The emphasis is not only on the translation of texts into other languages, but also on translation as a communicative act, for example, when people with different political opinions or members of different generations try to communicate with each other. Another aspect is the adaptation of literary material for other media formats, such as films or video games. The topic of translation runs like a red thread through all areas of the book fair: The Literary Agents & Scouts Centre (LitAg) trades in translation rights, and a large translation funding programme is at the heart of every Guest of Honour appearance. This year, together with the German translators’ association VDÜ, a diverse events programme will take place in the International Translation Centre (Hall 4.0). Here, discussions about the role and visibility of translators and editors will take place. Further talks will be held on topics such as sensitivity reading and postcolonial translation. Nina George, president of the European Writers Council, will present the Free All Words initiative, which provides funding for the translation of works by authors from Ukraine and Belarus.

The International Translation Centre’s programme is being curated by VDÜ and Frankfurter Buchmesse; partners are various European literary organisations, including Czech Lit, ENLIT, FILI, Goethe Institut, Litprom e.V. the Slovenian Book Agency and Die Weltlesebühne e.V.

Cooperation with anti-discrimination association BDB e.V.

Frankfurter Buchmesse wants to ensure that all participants have a good experience at the fair – regardless of gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, disabilities, ethnic heritage, nationality, age, language, religion or ideology. The book fair team is therefore being advised by Bund für Antidiskriminierungs- und Bildungsarbeit e.V. (BDB – the Association for Anti-Discrimination and Educational Work) as it raises awareness and develops the relevant measures. In addition, a three-member Awareness Team, consisting of BDB staff, will be present on the fairgrounds during the week of the fair. The team will take action against any behaviour that violates the Frankfurter Buchmesse’s Code of Conduct(opens in a new window). Visitors who are harassed at the book fair or notice that another person is being harassed can report this directly to the Awareness Team, which will be centrally located in Hall 4.0. In addition, protected rooms will be available for individual discussions.

International trade programme

What makes a good children’s book these days? How are stories for young readers being told? And what role does diversity play in this context? These and other topics will be the focus of the international Frankfurt Kids Conference, curated by the book fair and which will take place as part of Frankfurter Buchmesse for the first time. On Wednesday, 19 October 2022, experts from the publishing industry will come together with representatives of children’s and youth organisations to discuss children’s books in a socio-political context and from an international perspective. The Frankfurt Kids Conference will take place on Wednesday, 19 October, from 9:30 am to noon at the Congress Center, Level 3, Illusion Conference Room. Tickets and further information: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/highlights/professional-programme/frankfurt-kids (opens in a new window)

On 19 and 20 October, international industry leaders and opinion makers will come together at the Publishing Perspectives Forum. The two-day event, curated by the international trade magazine Publishing Perspectives in cooperation with Frankfurter Buchmesse, will convene leading voices from the global publishing industry to discuss new challenges and analyse trends. Speakers will range from top executives at multinational companies to influential entrepreneurs and small business owners who are actively involved in shaping the future of publishing. The programme will take place on Wednesday, 19 October, from 10 am to 4 pm, and Thursday, 20 October, from 10 am to 2 pm in Messe Frankfurt’s Congress Center, Spektrum Room. https://publishingperspectives.com/pp-forum/(opens in a new window)

In the run-up to the book fair, there will be a digital professional programme: MasterClasses will take place from October 10-14, 2022. Companies that would like to present their business cases in 60-minute online sessions can still apply: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/highlights/professional-programme/masterclasses(opens in a new window). After a successful application, the audience is invited to participate free of charge. Frankfurter Buchmesse’s popular online networking format “The Hof” will also continue: Online sessions will be held on September 8th and 29th, and on Wednesday, October 19th, at 5 p.m. (German Time). To register for the online sessions please visit: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/highlights/professional-programme/hof(opens in a new window).

Frankfurt Studio

With the Frankfurt Studio (Room Europa, Hall 4.0), the book fair is once again offering a space for hybrid events. Each event in the Frankfurt Studio is recorded and subsequently edited for the Frankfurter Buchmesse’s media library. In the Frankfurt Studio, an audience of up to 150 people can attend the events live on site. Both trade events and events for the public take place here. On Wednesday, 19 October at 2 p.m., the Global 50 CEO Talk will traditionally take place; the speakers will be announced shortly. "Data in Publishing" will be the focus of the programme on Wednesday, in which the World International Property Organization (WIPO), the Federation of European Publishers (FEP), and buchreport, among others, will participate. On Thursday, 20 October, the programme in the Frankfurt Studio will be dedicated to academic publishing, with panels hosted by Wiley-VCH, ProQuest, Taylor & Francis and CCC, among others. Besides talks organised by the European network of book fairs Aldus up, the STARTS Day will again take place in the Frankfurt Studio: on Friday, 21 October. A further highlight is scheduled for Sunday, 23 October: Alok Vaid-Menon will present their new book “Beyond the Gender Binary” (Penguin Random House, published in Germany by Zuckersüß Verlag). Alok Vaid-Menon is a gender non-conforming writer, performance artist, and public speaker who challenges the gender binary in a creative way and has been featured by HBO, MTV, NBC, The Guardian and The New York Times. All events in the Frankfurt Studio will be available shortly in the Online Calendar of Events at buchmesse.de.

Authors in the spotlight on media partners’ stages

This year, the ARD stage will again be located in the Forum, where visitors can experience authors and personalities from culture and politics discussing their books and ideas. Hosted by Jagoda Marinić, the SHEROES series will take place once more, featuring climate activist Luisa Neubauer and economist Maja Göpel, among others. Additional guests appearing on the stage will include Francis Fulton-Smith, Leïla Slimani, Liao Yiwu, Judith Holofernes, Richard David Precht and the winner of the 2022 German Book Prize; and many more, who will talk about their new publications.
The Blue Sofa, the collective writers’ forum organised by Bertelsmann, ZDF, Deutschlandfunk Kultur and 3sat, will return to its location in Hall 3.1. Discussions are planned with some 80 authors, including Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah, the winner of the German Book Trade’s Peace Prize Serhij Zhadan, Donna Leon, Robert Menasse, Péter Nádas, Fernando Aramburu, Andrej Kurkow, Ian Kershaw, David Van Reybrouck, Charlotte Link and Andrea Wulf. The German Children’s Literature Award will be featured on the Blue Sofa for the first time, when nominee Kirsten Boie discusses the award with two experts from the jury. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper, the weekly Die Zeit and radio broadcaster Deutschlandfunk Kultur are also planning their own programmes. In addition, Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung and business magazine Brand Eins will each have a stand in Frankfurt. The programme will also feature high-profile events organised by newsweekly Der Spiegel, and Brigitte magazine. ARTE will host three events dedicated to their project "Et maintenant? International Festival of Ideas for Tomorrow" in the Frankfurt Pavilion.

BOOKFEST

This year's BOOKFEST offers more than 40 events at 20 venues in the city of Frankfurt. From crime nights and other special book events to evening events hosted by publishers – the programme is as diverse as the authors who will be appearing. With Elvira Sastre, Najat El Hachmi, Isaac Rosa, José Ovejero, Rosa Ribas, the Guest of Honour Spain is also prominently represented. At a BOOKFEST extra, Donna Leon will answer questions by Shelly Kupferberg (BOOKFEST extra: DONNA LEON | Ticket-Shop (www.eventim-light.com(opens in a new window)). The programme will be online soon: www.buchmesse.de/bookfest(opens in a new window).

Important links:
Frankfurter Buchmesse ticket shop: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/visit/tickets(opens in a new window)
Frankfurter Buchmesse press accreditation: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/press/accreditation(opens in a new window)

Contact for the media
Press & Corporate Communication, Frankfurter Buchmesse, press@buchmesse.de
Kathrin Grün, Head of Communications, Phone: +49 (0) 69 2102-170(opens in a new window), gruen@buchmesse.de

About Frankfurter Buchmesse
Frankfurter Buchmesse is the international publishing industry’s biggest trade fair and the most important international marketplace for content – from novels and children’s books to academic databases and stories for films, games and virtual reality experiences. Publishing professionals from around the world meet here with partners from the technology sector and from related creative and cultural industries, sparking new partnerships and business models. Since 1976, the book fair has featured an annual Guest of Honour country, which showcases its book market, literature and culture to attendees in a variety of ways. Frankfurter Buchmesse organises the participation of German publishers at international book fairs and hosts trade events throughout the year in major international markets. Frankfurter Buchmesse is a subsidiary of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers & Booksellers Association). https://www.buchmesse.de/en(opens in a new window)