Istanbul Book Fair opens at weekend

The 35th International Istanbul Book Fair will open on Nov. 12 at the TÜYAP Fair Convention and Congress Center in the city's Büyükçekmece district.

This year's guest of honor, Germany, will be represented by 30 publishers, while 13 authors from the country will take part in events and discussions.

The events include a meeting of Turkish and German publishers on Nov. 14, followed by panel discussions on "Publishing Trends in Germany," "Children's Publishing and the Future of Reading," and "Independent Publishing." The German pavilion in the fair's International Hall will be available for visiting during the first four days of the fair, while books in German will be sold at the German bookstore booth in Hall 2 throughout the fair.

The fair is this year celebrating its 35th anniversary with 800 publishers and nongovernmental organizations and over 300 events including interviews, panel discussions, poetry recitals and children's activities.

The writer of honor of this year's fair is Professor Ioanna Kuçuradi and the theme will be "Philosophy and Humanity."

The 26th Istanbul Art Fair - ARTIST 2016 will simultaneously be held with the 35th International Istanbul Book Fair, and both will be free for students, teachers, retirees and people with disabilities until Nov. 20.