First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska addressed the participants of the International Book Fair in Warsaw, where our country received the status of an honored guest.
The Warsaw Book Fair is one of the largest annual book forums in Central Europe, attended by about 90 thousand guests. In 2023, it takes place on May 25-28 at the Palace of Culture and Science. The event is attended by publishers from Poland, Ukraine, France, Spain, Germany, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Romania, Norway, India, and independent Belarusian publishers.
In her video address to the participants of the event, Olena Zelenska noted that right now Ukraine and Poland are creating a history that will be written about in books.
"During the months of Russia's full-scale invasion, you have warmly welcomed and sheltered millions of our people, and today you are warmly welcoming our books. And this is also very important to us. The aggressor has already destroyed 300 libraries and interrupted the work of dozens of our publishing houses. Just as our people are fighting for the right to live, so are our books. Today you will see 45 publishing houses from Ukraine at the fair, which continue to work despite everything. And Ukrainian authors continue to work in the same way, because it is the book that is better than the media in expressing everything that is happening to people who are defending their homes and loved ones," the First Lady said.
Special elements of the Ukrainian program at the fair will include meetings with authors and publishers from Ukraine, as well as seminars, literary discussions, and artistic events. This will make it possible to present the entire spectrum of contemporary Ukrainian literature to visitors, and to hold about 40 literary meetings with more than 30 prominent authors. The literary events with the participation of Ukrainian authors and publishers will be held under the slogan "Millions of Bridges". This name represents the deepening of ties between Ukraine and Poland and the continuation of work on a better understanding of each other's cultures.
"Joseph Conrad, a prominent writer of Polish descent who was born in Ukraine and worked in Britain, once said: "The author writes only half of the book, the other half is written by the reader." So, I wish all readers and authors - Polish and Ukrainian - to create a common history of the victory of good over evil," Olena Zelenska said.
The Ukrainian program at the fair was created with the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland, and the Embassy of Ukraine.