The International Gaudeamus Book and Education Fair Closes its Doors
Organized by Radio Romania, the International Gaudeamus Book and Education Fair comes to a close on Sunday evening.
Roxana Vasile, 25.11.2013, 12:30
Over 115,000 guests, by 3,000 more than last year, have visited the Gaudeamus International Book and Education Fair, organized by Radio Romania in Bucharest. Of these, over 75% bought books. Having reached the 20th edition, the book fair is considered one of the most important such events in Romania. Gaudeamus came to a close on Sunday evening at the end of 5 days of record sales and public attendance.
The fair boasted over 400 publishers and more than 600 public events. This year’s edition brought a plethora of events, from book launches, debates, conferences, public discussions with writers and publishers to film screenings. Publishing houses put up a rich offer of new releases and major discounts of up to 80% off, which attracted literature aficionados.
The director of the fair Vladimir Epstein gave us more details: “An important survey shows that the average amount of money spent per capita was close to 40 euros. It seems that fiction, essay writing, utility and education books topped the list of choices”.
The last day of the fair was devoted to the Gaudeamus Awards ceremony. Humanitas Publishing House was voted the public’s favourite publisher.
Well-surprised and pleading for quality and continuity, Humanitas Publishers director, philosopher and writer Gabriel Liiceanu said: “When the public chooses you every year there is no better reward for your efforts. We believe in that, it defines our activity. The team at Humanitas is truly exceptional. I believe we have iconic representatives of Romanian culture who have been with Humanitas from its origins. Therefore our success this year is also owing to a series that now consists of 30 exceptional volumes that would enrich any bookshelf”.
The most wanted book of Gaudeamus was voted J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit”. For the first time ever the Romanian Goncourt Prize was awarded to Sorj Chaladon. Another important event that arrested public attention and enjoyed a roaring success was the “Book Homecoming” project, whereby every visitor could donate books to an anonymous pool that reached 5,000 volumes by the end of the fair.
The books will go to Romanian-language schools in Timoc Valley, Serbia. The guest of honor in the 20th edition of the Gaudeamus Book Fair was the group of Nordic countries, consisting of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The special partner of the event was the Group of French-speaking Embassies, Delegations and Institutes in Romania.
