With more than 50 speakers, 16 publishers, 3 exhibitions and a rich cultural programme, Italy will be the Guest of Honour at the 21st Thessaloniki International Book Fair, which will take place at the TIBF-Helexpo exhibition centre from 8 to 11 May.

She presents herself by rediscovering her proximity to Greece, developing the chosen theme: Nearby Horizons. It is precisely these horizons that the two countries have always shared, exploring them through dialogue, reflection, mutual understanding and the constant stimulation of ideas contained in the world of the book.

The presence of Italy at the Thessaloniki Book Fair, the most important in Greece, which was made possible thanks to the support of the Italian institutions, namely the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation with the Italian Embassy in Athens and the Italian Cultural Institute of Athens, the Italian Ministry of Culture with the Book and Reading Centre, the ICE (Agency for the Promotion Abroad and Internationalisation of Italian Businesses), as well as the cooperation of AIE (Association of Italian Publishers), assisted by Ex Libris. The TIBF will be an opportunity for Italian publishing to be known and promoted, and a new stage in the development that has for many years seen Italy as a country of honour at the main publishing fairs around the world.

Deputy Minister of State for Culture Iason Fotilas said:

“The participation of Italy as a country of honour at the Thessaloniki International Book Fair will be a bridge and an opportunity. An opportunity to get to know each other better. To spread works, ideas, words. To strengthen the ties between us. Italian authors and publishers will have the opportunity to get to know the programmes, tools and policies offered by Greece and the Hellenic Foundation for Books and Culture, for writing, book production and culture.

In the words of Paolo Cuculi, Ambassador of Italy in Athens: “This is an opportunity for an excellent promotion of Italy in Greece, which allows us to honour the tradition of intense cultural exchanges between two countries that have always managed to turn literature into a powerful means of outward projection and dialogue. The significant participation of Italian writers and publishers in Thessaloniki demonstrates the extent of the mutual interest of the two countries in the field of culture and the publishing industry, honouring the profound influence that Italy manages to express in these areas”.

The ambassadors of our country in Thessaloniki, according to the tradition of the “Guest of Honour” at international book fairs, will be the authors. Beatrice Bandiera, Marta Barone, Roberto Camurri, Silvia Ferrara, Andrea Franzoso, Luigi Guarnieri, Antonio Manzini, Andrea Marcolongo, Melania Mazzucco, Matteo Nucci, Aurelio Picca, Marco Steiner, Matteo Strukul and Stefano Sturloni will come from Italy. Some important personalities from the cultural world of Italy and Greece will animate their meetings. They are: Grigoris Bekos, Dimitra Dotsi, Konstantina Evangelou, Yannis Koukoulas, Dimitris Mamaloukas, Elisavet Menelaou, Francesco Neri, Anna Papastavrou, Euthymia Sighollitou, and Lemonia Vassvani.