The Taiwan Pavilion will return to the Guadalajara International Book Fair in Mexico with an emphasis on "wordless” picture books under the banner "Descubra Taiwan (Discover Taiwan)” from Nov. 25 through Dec. 3.
This year, the Ministry of Culture has organized a delegation that will bring 451 original works from 52 Taiwan publishers and 12 Spanish-language samples of select Taiwan picture books to the 31st edition of the long-running international fair.
The Taiwan Pavilion will display works in eight sections - "Books From Taiwan,” "Recommended Taiwan Illustrators,” "Children's Picture Books,” "Comic Books,” "Chinese-Language Learning Materials,” "Award-winning Books,” "Multimedia Publishing Works,” and "Publishers.”
The publishers' section this year has the highest number yet of participating companies. The twelve publishers include Cosmos Culture Ltd. (寂天文化), Locus Publishing Company (大塊文化), Dala Publishing Company (大辣出版), Ever Glory Publishing (長鴻出版社), and Sharp Point Press (尖端出版社).
A special highlight of this year's Taiwan Pavilion is up-and-coming illustrator Zhou Jian-xin (周見信). Known for his printmaking and ink-painting elements and heart-warming storylines, his collaborative work "Missing Cat Posters (尋貓啟事)” with author Kuo Nai-wen (郭乃文) had just secured a licensing agreement with an established Mexican publisher.
Apart from being stationed at the pavilion, Zhou will also join forums alongside illustrators from Denmark, Spain, and Uruguay, Spain, and host book-signing sessions and workshops to interact with local readers.
An additional section for licensing will also be organized with Taiwanese professionals stationed to promote licensing deals. Moreover, to boost licensing opportunities, the Ministry has selected two experts from Book Republic and B.K Norton (龍登出版) to join the book fair through a copyright examination program.
The Guadalajara International Book Fair is the largest annual event of its kind in the Spanish-speaking world. The fair serves as a major platform to promote books and their authors. Last year, the fair received roughly 800,000 visitors.
The opening ceremony of Taiwan Pavilion will be held on Nov. 27 to welcome publishing professionals, organizers, media, and licensing experts in discovering the literary treasures of Taiwan.
Related Content