“Reading helps us understand difficult times”: Book World Prague returns with focus on Europe and history

Book World Prague, Czechia’s biggest literary festival, gets underway at Prague’s Exhibition Grounds this week, featuring around 60 international writers, including historian Timothy Snyder. Ahead of the festival, I spoke with its director, Radovan Auer.

This year's themes of Book World Prague are history and Europe, inspired by Milan Kundera’s quote: “The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting.” Why did you choose that motto and how will it shape this year’s programme?

“Well, we usually start thinking about the themes for the next year well in advance, often a year ahead. When we chose these themes, I personally thought we would gradually narrow them down over the course of the year.

Timothy Snyder |Photo: Khalil Baalbaki, Czech Radio

“But then we realised that supporting common European ideas is not as banal as it might have sounded a year ago. And the same applies to history. The usual phrase, ‘don’t forget your history or you will repeat its mistakes’, no longer feels as simple or straightforward as it once did. So we decided to speak openly about these issues.

“I think one of our main guests, the American historian Timothy Snyder, is a perfect example of how we can approach these themes. We also decided to dedicate a special space, which we call the European Square, or Agora, or Maidan, or Rynek, as an open area for discussions about European identity in culture and literature, but also in society itself.”

You have already mentioned one of the guests, Timothy Snyder. Another big name is the British-Tanzanian novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah, the winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature. Which of the international guests are you personally most excited about?

Abdulrazak Gurnah|Photo: Facebook of the Nobel Prize award

“There are plenty of international guests. We will have around 60 writers from abroad. I can mention just a few names, but the programme is designed to appeal to a very broad audience.

“So alongside historians and Nobel Prize winners, we also have mainstream writers. We will welcome a trio of European thriller stars: Bernard Minier, Helen Fields and Robert Bryndza.

“I can also mention the Italian authors Davide Enia and Dario Ferrari. And I could continue for a very long time because this year’s programme is very rich.”

Are there any particular debates, readings or guests you would especially recommend to our English-speaking listeners?

Photo: Book World Prague

“Most of our programmes with international guests are held in English. If you look through our catalogue, at least 20 percent of the programme is available in English.

“We also have special discussions focused on the Central and Eastern European book market, particularly connected to the Czech Republic being the guest of honour at this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair, which is very important for us.

“So all of this professional programme will also be available in English.”

You have already mentioned one of the new features this year, the European Square. What was the idea behind creating that space?

“The idea was to create an open space where everybody can come, sit down, have a cup of coffee or tea, but also listen to shared European discussions.

“Together with EUNIC (a network of cultural institutes and embassies), and other European partners, we brought together a group of international guests to discuss topics such as writing in small languages, courage in society, and what connects us in Europe, but also what divides us.”

I’ve also noticed that the comics and illustration section is bigger than ever this year, with a new Island of Illustration. Why have you decided to dedicate more space to graphic storytelling?

“Year after year, the number of young people visiting the book fair and literary festival has been increasing. And we can see that they are very interested in comics. In the Czech Republic, comics are really on the rise, I think.

“It is no longer only mainstream comics, and people are not interested only in manga or Marvel. They are also interested in graphic novels and high-quality illustration.

“So we can clearly see growing interest in comics among young people at Book World.”

And talking about young readers, how important is it for Book World Prague to attract a younger generation to books?

“You know, our main mission, generally speaking, is to increase reading because we believe this is extremely important. Reading not only helps with literacy, but also with well-being, quality of life and job opportunities. We really believe reading matters.

“So this has always been the main mission of Book World Prague, to encourage reading. And we are very happy that we are quite successful in attracting young people to books and reading.”

As you have already said, this year’s programme strongly reflects questions of democracy and Europe’s future. Would you say that literature can help people make sense of these uncertain times?

Prague Exhibition Grounds – Křižík Pavilions, Pyramid and Spiral|Photo: Radek Šrettr Úlehla, CAMP

“Yes, definitely. I am completely convinced of it. It would probably take a long time to discuss all the different aspects of this, but in general, yes, reading is capable of helping us understand these difficult times.”

And finally, for someone who has never visited Book World Prague before, what kind of atmosphere can they expect over the four days? Why should they visit?

“I think everybody will find something interesting here. We are not focused only on certain groups of readers or visitors. We are really trying to attract everybody. We can also recommend the very warm festival atmosphere. People spend time here with their families and they really enjoy it.”