Books as Bridge: BIBF Welcomes 1,600 Publishers from 71 Countries

english.beijing.gov.cn
2024-06-24

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[Photo via Beijing Daily]

From June 19 to 23, the 30th Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF) was held at the China National Convention Center.

Since its inception in 1986, BIBF has been adhering to the principle of "Bringing in the best books around the world to China and introducing Chinese books to the entire world". It is now the world's second-largest book fair.

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[Photo via Beijing Daily]

This year's BIBF attracted 1,600 exhibitors from 71 countries and regions, including 550 Chinese exhibitors and 1,050 from the rest of the world, featuring 220,000 excellent titles from China and abroad and creating a cultural feast.

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[Photo via Beijing Daily]

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[Photo via CRI Online]

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the Guest of Honor of this year's BIBF, presented a captivating exhibition booth, featuring exquisite Arabian clothing, sweet dates from date palms, traditional Middle Eastern instruments like Oud, and more. Experiential activities and a plethora of exhibits including distinctive artworks attracted numerous visitors to stop and appreciate.

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[Photo via CRI Online]

"So realistic! It's like stepping into the world of The Three-Body Problem!" Mr. Zhang, a visitor at the online publishing exhibition area, marveled as he tried 5G-powered new reading products with VR glasses. At the fair this year, several achievements of the integration of cultural and technological elements, such as "Digital Dunhuang" and "Digital Great Wall", bring the audience a sci-tech spectacle that combines visual, auditory and tactile experiences.

At the exhibition site, a series of signing ceremonies for cooperation projects were held. The Commercial Press unveiled the first batch of results of the China-Iran Classic Works Translation and Publishing Project. The publishing house also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the German publishing house De Gruyter Brill. These signings highlighted the Chinese publishing industry's new achievements in its efforts to expand its global outreach.

Publishers from the UK, Italy, Türkiye, India, Brazil and other countries gathered at the exhibition area of Beijing to explore the latest offerings. Among them, a foreign businessman picked up a beautifully bound book on the traditional Chinese culture and, in not very fluent Chinese, exclaimed: "This book is amazing. I want to bring it back to my country and let more people learn about China!"

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[Photo via CRI Online]

It's worth mentioning that on June 23rd, 'A Cross-Cultural Discussion in Literary Beijing' Cultural Exchange Session of International Web Portal of Beijing was held at Beijing International Book Fair. Representatives of followers from the International Web Portal of Beijing and BeijingService WeChat Official Account participated in the event, sharing thoughts on books and Beijing culture, savoring the charm of literary Beijing, and exploring the infinite possibilities of cultural exchange between China and foreign countries.

Sources: WeChat official account "Xinhua Shidian", BeijingService

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