Bangkok International Book Fair 2008

The 36th National Book Fair and the Bangkok International Book Fair 2008 is back! With hundreds of booths, and their big discounts, and numerous exhibitions and activities, the event is being held at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Hall until April 7. The international book fair ends on Sunday, March 30.

Below are some highlights:
- An exhibition on Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana's life and written works. At the 'Shining Rainbow' corner, you can express your gratitude to the late princess by buying a ten-baht card and writing your condolence messages, or a 'Shining Rainbow' CD-book set sold at the booth. All proceeds will go to five charity organisations under the auspices of the late HRH Princess.

- At Booth Z02, children will get a chance to learn about global warming and to check on how their own daily habit may have contributed to the phenomenon. A similar theme is also the focus of booth X07, with activities on tree planting, and how to reduce, reuse and recycle.

- Booth Z04 revolves around the concept of Book Start, with ideas on how parents can induce their child into the world of books from a very young age.

- Enjoy discounts of up to 50 per cent at the booth of Silkworm Books, Mekong Press and Paragon Asia (offers last until tomorrow, so you'd better hurry!)

- Tomorrow (March 30) afternoon, from 1 to 2 pm, Sathaporn booth (E02) will launch a Thai translation of best-selling Taiwanese book titled Mae Phom Keb Khaya Khai (My Mother Is a Garbage Scavenger).

- On Tuesday (April 1), from 2 to 4 pm, Nanmee Books' booth features a special book launch of the Thai translation of Sirin Pattanothai' s memoir entitled The Dragon's Pearl or Mook Mangkorn. Sirin and her elder brother Wanwai will talk about their unforgettable experiences being sent to China during the early days of the communist revolution. On Thursday (April 3), from 3 to 5 pm, the publisher will launch a new collection of short stories and eight novel books by Prapassorn Sewikul. The event is to celebrate the diplomat-writer' s sixtieth birthday anniversary with a special poetry recitation and a roundtable panel by prominent literary critics and writers.

- The booth of the Quest Foundation (O06) which specialises in books by Krishnarmurti will launch a Thai translation of the guru's book titled Can Humanity Change. The foundation has imported several more books and DVDs, in English and Thai. Among them are: Think on These Things, Don't Make a Problem of Anything, A Flame of Learning, Choiceless Awareness, and Social Responsibility.

- Last but not least, visit the German Pavilion. As the guest of honour for this year's International Bangkok Book Fair, a pool of German-language publishers have put together a wide array of activities ranging from hand puppetry to science experiment and a chance to meet three top German writers. On display are over 1,000 titles from 200 publishing houses in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The subjects range from climate change, youth books, classical music and jazz and a selection of best designed German books.

One must-try activity is called 'The Textbox' which provides a unique opportunity for the audience to listen to the performing authors, Thai and German writers, in complete intimacy through headphones in a Plexiglas cabin. Created by two rap poets from Germany, Bas Bottcher and Timo Brunke, the idea is to allow both the author and his/her listener to be united through every syllable and alliteration, without interference from the surrounding world. Translations of the texts will be displayed in Thai language on a LCD-screen.

Another highlight is attendance of three celebrated authors of the German language: Julia Franck (recipient of the German Book Prize 2007 for Best Novel), Silke Scheuermann and the Swiss writer Zoe Jenny. Their books are popular far beyond German speaking countries and have been translated into over a dozen languages.

Source:
Bangkok Writers' Guild mail list
Logo design: Eric Barrientos
Logo concept: A.D. Thompson