Roundup: Bologna Children's Book Fair opens, Chinese writer wins top children's book prize

The 53rd edition of the Bologna Children's Book Fair kicked off here in northern Italy on Monday with a wide range of initiatives for the public, schools and families, and an enhanced commitment to the promotion of reading.

Considered the most important international fair event in the children's book publishing world, the fair counts around 1,200 exhibitors from more than 70 countries and regions.

Among the novelties of this year was an entire pavilion dedicated to multimedia in children's publishing and a new narrative prize dedicated to young readers because of a "strong comeback of narrative for the younger children," Elena Pasoli, group product manager at the fair, told Xinhua.

The main trend in younger children's narrative was emotions, she said, while many novels for older kids were inspired by historical events and topical issues such as politics, family, migration, integration, and multiculturalism.

Art explored in a simple and understandable way and the theme of disability were also present in many Italian and foreign books, Pasoli went on saying, with a special award dedicated this year to disability, both for books targeting disabled children and books that talk about the disability issue.

She also said this year the Bologna Children's Book Fair was celebrating the centenary of the birth of one of most famous children's author, Roald Dahl.

On Monday, for the first time, a Chinese children's fiction writer, Cao Wenxuan, was awarded at the fair the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Prize, the highest international recognition given to an author and an illustrator of children's books.

Pasoli highlighted that China was having an extraordinary presence at the Bologna Children's Book Fair, also in view of 2018, when the Asian country would likely be the fair's guest of honor with high level delegations that would bring exhibitions and organize various meetings on children's books.

"We already have nearly 500 square meters of Chinese books, whose quality level has significantly grown in recent times both as regards content and illustrations, which are often the result of fruitful collaborations with Western partners, and China's participation will further grow in the future," Pasoli told Xinhua.

She also said there was a plan to dedicate an exhibition area to the China-proposed "Belt and Road" initiative, in order to bring the theme closer to children, also with the contribution of other Asian countries connected by the new Silk Road in some way. Endit