Skopje, 18 April 2024 (MIA) - Book fairs are much more than selling books, they are chances to socialize and to bring great creative potential together. During uncertain times, we must nurture and defend books as a symbol of hope and dialogue, said Culture Minister Bisera Kostadinovska-Stojchevska at Thursday’s official opening of the 36th edition of the Skopje Book Fair at Skopje’s Boris Trajkovski Arena.

The Minister stressed that in recent years fairs have grown into educational and cultural events that offer opportunities for networking, by nurturing the bonds between writers, publishers and readers. 

Kostadinovska-Stojchevska also spoke about the growing number of visitors to the Skopje Book Fair, noting that it says a lot about people’s attitudes towards books.

“One article with apocalyptic scenarios predicts that by 2050 humanity won’t need books. I find this hard to believe, but maybe for the coming generations this will be normal. I am certain that we, who are living in this age which some call transitional, shouldn’t give up on the fact that during uncertain times we need to nurture and defend books as a symbol of hope and dialogue and as a creative modernization of the world as a guide,” Kostadinovska-Stojchevska said. 

In her address at the opening, Skopje Fair Executive Director Daniela Gligorovska said the Skopje Book Fair would offer a lot of fun and socialization, joyous moments with favorite books and writers, as well as new adventures.

“With the opening of the gates of the Arena, one more chapter has officially been opened in the 36-year-long story of the Skopje Book Fair, which continues to inspire us and to feed our love for books and words,” Gligorovska said.

Writer Frosina Parmakovska said Skopje Book Fair represents a real holiday to all lovers of the written word.

“We’ve heard a thousand times that our native tongue is our fatherland. The book in that native tongue is the wealth of that fatherland. But what does this too broad of a formulation mean for us writers? This fatherland is most pronounced in our books, inside of us and outside of us, in our physical fatherland, but also in the world, in the experiences we collect and store in little jars and by opening them, it reveals the most beautiful tastes and scents. This fatherland is in the late hours of the night where in the most magical way we communicate with our leaders through the page. It is a room with a couch in front of a therapist who wisely draws out entire sunken cities out of the greatest depths,” Parmakovska said. 

The Skopje Book Fair will run through April  24. 

Photo: MIA