The Kaunas Book Fair will take place from September 18 to 20 at the Kaunas “Žalgiris” Arena. The fair’s program includes new book presentations, relevant discussions, and meetings with well-known authors, representatives of the cultural field, journalists, and public figures.
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The LLA event hall will cover very diverse topics and audiences over three days. Here, books will not be the end of the conversation but its beginning – sometimes serious and provocative, sometimes sensitive, and sometimes accompanied by laughter or a dog’s visit.
“This year, for the first time at the Kaunas Book Fair, we established the LLA event hall – a space not only for presenting books but also for live conversations about literature. We will talk about its creators, about how books reflect our time. I am sure that this space will be enriched by discussions about how the consumption of literature is changing today, the reader’s relationship with content, and the role of the translator traveling through different literary genres,” says LLA president Dovilė Zaidė.
Will podcasts replace books?
One of the most topical discussions in the LLA hall will try to answer whether rapidly popularizing podcasts can replace books. A book requires time and attention, while podcasts adapt to everyday life – they can be listened to while traveling, exercising, or cooking dinner. Can a conversation about a book replace hundreds of pages of the book? Or does it rather encourage opening the book?
In a discussion initiated by the fair’s patron, the bookstore chain “Pegasas,” about the impact of new content formats on reading habits and attention, neuroscientist Ramunė Dirvanskienė, book content creator Akvilė Knyguolis, historian, author, and podcaster, director of the Kaunas City Museum Simonas Jazavita, and the head of the “Pegasas” bookstore chain Jurga Sakalauskaitė will speak. The conversation will be moderated by LRT journalist and show host Audra Avižiūtė.
A different perspective on literature will open in the Lithuanian Literary Translators’ Union cycle “(Un)seen Translators” discussion “Traveling the Boundaries of Genre.” Translators Marius Burokas, Emilija Ferdmanaitė, and Toma Gudelytė will talk about translating texts balancing between prose and philosophy, science and poetry, the importance of delving into different disciplines in such work, and what it means to translate not only words but also thoughts into Lithuanian. The discussion will be moderated by writer Marijus Gailius.
An intellectual spy novel and the deconstruction of anger
One of the most anticipated literary meetings at the fair is the presentation of Mantas Adomėnas’s latest novel “Barbarian Invasions.” The novel intertwines political intrigues, intelligence operations, and hostile forces’ plans with philosophical questions arising at the threshold of the age of barbarism.
The action of the new intellectual spy novel unfolds in the same literary space as the reader-favorite dilogy “Coin & Labyrinth.” The author will be interviewed by cultural journalist Jūratė Žuolytė.
Detective story enthusiasts will look forward to a meeting with journalist and LRT show “Entry Forbidden” creator Aurelija Savickienė. Her sixth book “Whispers at Home” is the author’s first detective novel. The conversation with the author will be moderated by book reviewer Nora Žaliukė, better known to readers as the Book Lady.
An open and personal conversation is promised at the LLA space with the presentation of Ingrida Alonderė’s book “I am Angry, Therefore I Am.” The musicologist, director of the Vilnius City Municipality choir “Young Music,” and creator of Lithuania’s first virtual choir explores a familiar emotion in the book. The author talks about her attempts to understand anger, various therapies, and spiritual practices. The meeting will be moderated by LRT Radio senior editor Rasa Murauskaitė-Juškienė.
Gražina Balandytė and the history of Kaunas
A special meeting at the fair will be dedicated to the beloved theater and film actress Gražina Balandytė. Journalist Jurgita Lieponė created the actress’s portrait in the book “Our Dear Gražina. The Life Story of Gražina Balandytė” from memories of relatives and colleagues, the archive collected by her husband Andrius Čyga, letters, diaries, and press clippings. The book will be presented together with the author by director Gytis Padegimas.
Two book presentations are dedicated to the history of Kaunas. In the presentation of the publication “City Under Water: The Great Kaunas Flood of 1946,” historian Gediminas Kasparavičius will transport readers to one of the most dramatic episodes in the city’s history, while journalist and guide Viktorija Vitkauskaitė will invite to open the doors of ten interwar houses. Her book “Homes and Fates” won the best book award in the non-fiction category in last year’s Book of the Year competition.
Architect and wooden heritage enthusiast Povilas Konkulevičius will participate in this meeting, and the conversation will be moderated by Kotryna Lingienė.
Little visitors to the fair are also invited to the LLA hall. Writer, mindfulness teacher, and art therapy practitioner Vitalija Maksvytė will present the children’s book “Liutė, Mikas, and the Mysteriously Disappeared Dad’s Fish.” Animals play an important role in the book, so the author will come to the meeting together with border guard, dog trainer Ieva Vaicekauskaitė and her dog.
Where to look for giants today?
The LLA event hall program will conclude on September 20 at 3 p.m. with a discussion initiated by the ensemble “Lietuva” titled “Let’s Awaken the Giants: Who Would Help in These Historical Turning Points?”.
Historian Alfredas Bumblauskas, ensemble “Lietuva” leader Edita Klaunauskaitė, and management expert, former Deputy Minister of National Defense Orijana Mašalė will look at today’s challenges through the perspectives of history, leadership, culture, and organizational activities. The conversation will be moderated by historian Barbara Stankiewicz.
The starting point of the discussion will be the idea of a giant – a person capable of influencing others and changing the course of history through their choices, values, and actions. It will be a conversation about a time full of anxiety and threats, but also about supports that knowledge of history and culture can provide.
“The ensemble ‘Lietuva’ has consciously been following the path of living history for many years – we bring historical personalities and events to life on a professional stage in contemporary language. The better we know our history, the more firmly we can create what will be after us,” says ensemble “Lietuva” leader E. Klaunauskaitė.
More information – here.
