After a three-year break due to the pandemic, the Leipzig Book Fair is back. Together with Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and Saxony’s Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer, the German Minister of State for Culture, Claudia Roth, opened the fair yesterday evening with a ceremony. Austria is this year’s guest country.
The Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding was awarded to the Russian-Jewish author Maria Stepanova. Stepanova received the book prize for her volume of poetry “Girls Without Clothes”. She currently lives in exile in Germany. The book prize for European understanding, endowed with 20,000 euros, has been awarded since 1994.
The fair opens its doors to visitors and trade visitors today. On this day, the Leipzig Book Fair Prize is awarded in the categories of fiction, non-fiction/essay writing and translation.
