Germany: 70th Frankfurt Book Fair begins

BERLIN (AA) - Frankfurt Book Fair, the world's largest trade fair for books, has opened its gates to professionals on Wednesday.

Georgia, this year's guest country, is presenting its literature and culture with nearly 350 events at the fair. More than 70 authors, including Aka Morchiladze and Nino Kharatishvili, will attend readings and conferences until Sunday.

The pavilion of Georgia, which was designed to reflect the letters of Georgia's unique alphabet, was opened on Tuesday night by Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadz and EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini at an official ceremony.

Exhibitors will introduce nearly 300 literature works from Georgia and around 600 books about the country.

- Turkey’s pavilion

The Turkish pavilion at the fair, which has been a main attraction point for visitors, was opened with a ceremony on Wednesday.

Haluk Dursun, Turkey’s deputy culture and tourism minister, and renowned Turkish historian Ilber Ortayli, were among the attendees.

Highlights of Turkish pavilion included special stands on “children books” and traditional Turkish cuisine, a cooking demonstration by prominent Turkish chef and food writer Refika Birgul.

Prominent historians Ilber Ortayli and Francois Georgeon discussed the impact of Ottoman Empire in Europe’s History at a panel discussion on Wednesday.

Frankfurt Book Fair, which marks its 70th anniversary this year, is bringing together thousands of publishing experts, writers and journalists from all over the world.

More than 7,000 exhibitors from 110 countries are participating in the fair, which will open its gates to public on Saturday.