Visitors to the Beijing Book Fair. (GP)
The Barbadian Embassy in China joined over 90 countries to showcase books from their homelands in the 25th Beijing International Book Fair, which was held in China from August 22 to 29.
For the first time, the book fair exhibited a joint Latin America and Caribbean booth. The countries represented were The Bahamas, Barbados, Brazil, Cuba, Costa Rica, Chile, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Mexico, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Although the sale of books was not allowed, the Embassy said the majority of books showcased provided a fitting introduction to the culture of each country.
Barbados featured Heritage Barbados – A Pictorial Journey by Rasheed Boodhoo; The Barbadian Rum Shop by Peter Laurie; and Andrew Turtle Stories by Andrew Bynoe.
The books were well received by the Chinese public and particularly by publishing professionals, with many Chinese publishers expressing interest in exploring future collaboration. More than 300,000 books were displayed by 2,500 exhibitors from 93 countries.