FRANKFURT, Oct 15 — The Frankfurt book fair, the world’s largest, is going ahead this week even after a spike in coronavirus infections turned the German city into a high-risk area. With authors signing books behind plexiglass, audiences wearing masks and industry events moved online,...
Juergen Boos, director of the Frankfurt Book Fair poses before the opening news conference in Frankfurt, Germany, October 13, 2020. — Arne Dedert/Pool handout via Reuters
The rapidly worsening outbreak, in a country that has so far coped relatively well with the pandemic, forced organisers to rewrite their plans several times. It was a huge blow to a fair that last year drew 300,000 visitors and has already been drastically scaled back. Literary happenings and political talks have also shifted online and can be followed by anyone with an internet connection. Hotels, museums, bars and bookshops across Frankfurt are hosting dozens of readings and discussions until Sunday to bring the fair to life, welcoming audiences of up to 50 people.
At Walden cafe yesterday evening, retired teacher Christiane Decker-Eisel, 67, queued patiently for German novelist Bov Bjerg, seated behind a large plexiglass screen, to sign her book. Volker Bouffier, the premier of Frankfurt’s Hesse state, said at the opening press conference that it was “brave” of organisers not to cancel the 2020 edition, “which would have been easier”.
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