Seoul Intl. Book Fair to open next month

This year's Seoul International Book Fair (SIBF) will kick off next month to guide book lovers through the latest news and trends in the publishing industry at home and abroad, its organizers said Thursday.

The SIBF 2022, the country's biggest annual book fair, is set to run from June 1-5 at the Convention and Exhibition Center in southern Seoul under the theme of "One Small Step," according to the Korean Publishers Association.

Colombia will participate in this year's event as the guest of honor in celebration of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between South Korea and the South American country.

With the motto "Colombia: creative, diverse and fraternal," around 30 Colombian writers will host discussion sessions, book exhibitions and cultural shows.

The book fair will bring together 180 local companies, including publishers, along with foreign publishing houses from 12 countries.

South Korean novelists Kim Young-ha and Eun Hee-kyung, and American writer Colson Whitehead, who has twice received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, will pose as promotional ambassadors for this year's SIBF.

Kim and Eun will give special lectures during the five-day event, along with Suzy Lee, who became the first South Korean to win the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award (HCAA).

Renowned foreign figures, including Colombian novelist Miguel Rocha Vivas and French writer Herve Le Tellier, will also visit the SIBF and host special programs. (Yonhap)