Trade Shows
66 | 67
Liber
International Book Fair
01-03/October
Montjuïc. 32nd edition
This year, the focus at this annual professional
book fair, which takes place alternately in
Barcelona and Madrid, was on innovation
in digital and technological services for
the world of publishing. For the first time,
the fair featured an exhibition of editorial
and literary content for merchandising and
audiovisual marketing. The Federation of
Publishers' Guilds of Spain, which organises
the fair, stressed its interest in making it a
platform to improve and expand the publishing
business abroad whilst, at the same time,
gradually giving it the character of a great event
for the general public.
Accordingly, Liber became, not only a major
exhibition, but also an important forum at
which professionals discussed the main issues
affecting the industry. Moreover, specifically, a
section was devoted to negotiating translation
rights, whilst themed sessions, master classes
and round tables were also organised.
In line with this desire to enhance its public
presence, the fair included
Liberatura
, an
initiative open to citizens, a literary festival
that took place in different venues around
Barcelona: at the Fair itself and at libraries and
bookstores. More than 60 authors took part in
this festival, discussing a range of issues with
non-professional audiences.
At the opening day, moreover, Liber paid
tribute to recently-deceased Barcelona writer
Ana María Matute. There was a a four-hour
public reading of Matute’s as-yet unpublished
novel,
Demonios familiares
, which she was
working on at the time of her death aged 88.
Finally, the Liber award for the most
outstanding Latin-American author went to
the writer Antonio Muñoz Molina.
•
+info
Area
20,000 m
2
Exhibitors
450
Type
Professional and public
Activities
Seminars and debates,
meetings, tributes
Organised by
Consorci de la Zona
Franca de Barcelona
+60
participating authors
