"The White Ravens" Panel

Final Stop Istanbul: Southeast-Asian Children’s Book Markets Today

The Southeast Asian book markets, which have been widely ignored internationally, are flourishing. There is a spirit of optimism, and the literary exchange within Asia is also gaining in importance. The Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC), organized annually by the Singapore Book Council, is no longer just a "hub to Southeast Asia," but to the entire Asian continent and evidence of the establishment of an "Asian identity" in the field of children's literature.

In the past, publishing houses would complain about the difficulties of gaining a foothold in the Western book market or of meeting Western taste criteria. Today, however, the presence on the Western market is no longer as relevant for many Asian publishers. In terms of content and aesthetics, an undeniable divide has emerged between Asia and Europe.

The «White Ravens Panel» focuses on questions such as: how does cultural exchange within Asia succeed, what similarities facilitate it and what barriers hinder it, how has the relationship with Western book markets changed, is an equal dialogue in the field of children's literature between East and West possible, and how can translations and cultural transfer be facilitated.

With
Felicia Low-Jimenez, Author and Publisher at Difference Engine, Singapore
William Phuan, Executive Director Singapore Book Council 
Lucia Obi, International Youth Library

An event organised in cooperation with the Bologna Children's Book Fair.

You find the stand of the International Youth Library in hall 29 D45.