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GEORGIA Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse 2018 GEORGIA Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse 2018 This catalogue was published within the framework of the project Georgia Guest of Honour at the Frankfurter Buchmesse 2018 with the support of the Georgian Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, and Georgian National Book Center. Publishing team Gvantsa Jobava Tinatin Beriashvili Tekla Kveladze Translator Maya Kiasashvili Ketevan Grdzelidze Editor Philip Price Designer Teona Chanishvili Publishers and Booksellers in Georgia A New Beginning for the Great Adventure of the Georgian Culture 2018 CATALOGUE All Over the World hat were the and Asia—and an active cultural GVANTSA expectations of the life. Georgia had always JOBAVA Frankfurter Buchmesse been an oasis of varying and when in 2013, the (some contrasting cultural trends up Chairperson of Wmight say risky) decision was to the point where our country Georgian Publishers made to name Georgia, a small was hidden away from the entire and Booksellers Association but very old country in Eastern world for seventy long years of Europe, the official Guest of the last century by the heavy Head of the Honour of the Buchmesse 2018? burden of the Iron Curtain. Publishing Program Georgia - Guest What can we tell international What does Georgian Literature of Honour at society about our country look like today? What did it Frankfurter today through our wide-ranging look like in the past? Who are Buchmesse 2018 presentation, constructed the Georgian authors worth Publishers and Booksellers in GEORGIA around the unifying concept meeting and hearing? Who are Georgia Made by Characters? the authors whose work foreign readers should be reading? Are Georgia is a country of Georgian publishers ready for historically free, tolerant the challenge they are facing? people with a geopolitical On a wider scale, what exactly location of great significance– is Georgian culture, and what on the boundary between Europe makes it attractive and unique? Last but not least, how will You should also keep in mind we assess this project when that we had to rebuild the entire it is all over? What are our publishing industry from zero in expectations, and how will the the early 1990s after it was left lives and careeers of Georgian in ruins, along with the entire authors and publishers change in country, following the fall and beyond 2019? This is just a of the Soviet Union. Georgian small list of the questions we publishers quickly established have asked ourselves and each and developed business other over the last five years of relationships with publishers planning as we thought about and across the world, taking any discussed these issues, sometimes challenges in their stride. They with fear, sometimes with pride, also encouraged and assisted and sometimes with the aim of the development of the Georgian providing mutual support. Translating School, which already had a long history and proud And now, with Frankfurter traditions. Moreover, these Buchmesse 2018 open for business, pioneers began the tradition the posters displayed in every of publishing Georgian school corner of the exhibition venue textbooks, thus becoming major tell us that this year, Georgia partners of the State in the really, truly is Guest of development of a modern education Honour. As representatives of system. the country in charge of the project this year, we Georgian Over the past twenty- authors and publishers cannot easily put into words how great five years, the Georgian our motivation is. We shall be delighted to welcome visitors, publishing and literary foreign colleagues and friends with open hearts to the sections community has come a of the vast exhibition pavilion allocated to the Guest of Honour, long way, and now the and indeed anywhere else you may find us in the book fair. baton has been passed You may be wondering what to a new generation of experience and abilities we have to handle a project of such huge caretakers with modern scale. The independent Georgian book outlooks (it should industry, which I have been serving for the past ten years, be noted here that is rather small. Considering its size and relatively short women form a significant history, however, it is comparatively well developed, majority of these meeting international standards and keeping pace with current young managers, this trends in the industry. being one of the most famous features of the publishing industry in Georgia). 06 In this regard, the support provided by the Ministry of Culture and the Georgian National Book Center, who are the main executors of the project at present, has been of the utmost importance. We are also grateful to the Georgian National Book Center, the major partner of Georgian Publishers and Booksellers Association, for helping us to lobby the publishing sector and Georgian authors. Now, with all these activities complete, we find ourselves Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse 2018. Several years ago, we could only dream of such a These young people are possibility, and yet somehow the dream working hard to integrate has come true. We are on our way. fifteen centuries of GeorgianNevertheless, the path of development literary tradition into a our publishing industry has taken over the last twenty-five years has single coherent system to been far from easy: the obstacles facilitate the export of we have faced include disputes with various governments, efforts CATALOGUE 2018 CATALOGUE Georgian literature abroad. against corruption, harsh debates, Over the past five years hard work with minimum resources of preparation for this project, we have received and on poor salaries, and battles invaluable assistance with the authorities to defend vital from the management democratic values like freedom of of the Frankfurt Book expression, freedom of publishing, Fair and various German and equality. And there is still publishers. They have shown great enthusiasm for more to do to reach the highest our project and, through level of freedom. The reason why I close cooperation with have mentioned all these issues here Georgian publishers and is to show that a desire to change authors, they have become the world comes naturally to many our teachers, partners, friends, and supporters. young Georgians today—they seem to The willingness of the be born as social activists, without Georgian government to ever realizing when and how this support the project with happened. There is no other choice the relevant investments and promotion of for young people in Georgia who translation work has also wish to survive and live a better proved to be of major, even life in a better country. The truth vital, significance. Publishers and Booksellers in GEORGIA behind these words could already be seen in the fighting spirit shown by young people back in the early days of Georgia’s independence, as the country began rebuilding itself after many years under the constraints of Soviet ideology. 07 Most Georgian authors and 08 publishers continue to influence the thought and consciousness of the nation today, just as they did in the past. They are present whenever civil society battles injustice, and they continue to support efforts to consolidate democratic values in Georgia. You may also have spotted a group of Georgian writers and publishers at our national stand at the Frankfurt Book Fair last year, holding up banners that read, “We are writers and Publishers from Georgia. We Have Voices. We have Power!”, “Stop Russia!”, and “Russia is an Occupier!” to protest Russia’s occupation of the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and Samachablo and its ongoing policy of “creeping occupation”. You will meet Georgian authors and publishers discussing that same issue again this year on various platforms. The aforesaid conflict zones are real, coexistent with our reality, and they form a painful part of the developed world. There are many places where you will be able to meet Georgian authors and publishers at this year’s Frankfurter Buchmesse: in the pavilion for the Guests of Honour, at various halls of the fair, and in many interesting CATALOGUE 2018 CATALOGUE venues throughout the city. Most Georgian authors and authors Georgian Most influence to continue publishers consciousness and thought the asjust today, nation the of are They past. the in did they society civil whenever present theyand injustice, battles to efforts support to continue valuesdemocratic consolidate have also may You Georgia. in Georgian of group a spotted our at publishers and writers Frankfurt the at stand national holding year, last Fair Book are“We read, that banners up fromPublishers and writers We Voices. Have We Georgia. Russia!”, “Stop Power!”, have Here, though, I would like to tell you about one very important part of the project of Guest of Honour: the publishing and “Russia is an Occupier!” toOccupier!” an is “Russia and the of occupation Russia’s protest and Abkhazia of territories Georgian policy ongoing its and Samachablo For smallwill You occupation”. “creeping of publishersand authors Georgian meet countriesagain issue same that discussing Theplatforms. various on year this like real,are zones conflict aforesaid and reality, our with coexistent the of part painful a form they world. developed program, which is organized Georgia, such zones of conflict and implemented by Georgian are particularly alarming. Publishers and Booksellers Unfortunately, war remains a Association and focuses mainly on problem even in the modern world, the professional development of and accordingly, we believe the publishing sector. we have a duty to write about You will find the following three and loudly discuss this issue. national stands at the book fair. Georgian authors write about all topics that are current The Georgian National Stand, and problematic for global located in Hall 5.0, unites society today: human freedom, approximately forty Georgian equality, war, the importance publishing houses of all sizes, of peace, the passions of youth presenting their most recent and human passions in general, literary works in Georgian.
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