LISBON’S 75th Book Fair kicked off on May 25 and continues until June 13 in Parque Eduardo VII.
There are 217 pavilions (three more than last year), with 125 publishers and booksellers participating. Instead of the traditional parallel line and file set up, this year the stalls are arranged around small and more intimate ‘squares’, dotted either side of the park’s central Alameda avenue. The idea was the brainchild of architects Marcos Cruz and Marjan Colletti, who also came up with the grand pavilion and auditorium-café, where literary and poetry readings, book launches, plays and concerts take place.
This year, the Book Fair celebrates the 200th anniversary of the death of Bocage (Portuguese poet) and marks 150 years since the birth of Cesário Verde (Portuguese poet) and Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro (Portuguese painter and sculptor).
Foreign writers eulogised and other events and publications celebrated at the Book Fair include Hans Christian Andersen, the 400th anniversary of the publication of ‘Don Quixote’, the 250th anniversary of the Great Lisbon Earthquake and the 100th anniversary of the Theory of Relativity (Albert Einstein). C.G.
