Frankfurt Book Fair: 25,000 visitors daily

The Frankfurt Book Fair, which will be held from October 20-24, has presented its plans for the fair's 73rd edition. 

"We have a special permit to hold the Frankfurter Buchmesse: According to the current health and safety plan, 25,000 participants will be able to visit the book fair each day," president Juergen Boos said in a statement on Wednesday.    

It will be a hybrid event with digital presentations and in-person attendance, with personalized tickets.

The book fair's hygiene plan includes "an indoor air supply of 100% fresh, non-recirculated air, a generous layout of the exhibition halls and entrances, intensive cleaning procedures, catering that reflects current health and safety needs, and the wearing of masks."

Participants must either be vaccinated, been recently tested negative or recovered from COVID-19.

Guest of honor: Canada

To date, exhibitors from 60 countries have signed up. Canada, after the 2020 cancellation, is guest of honor again in 2021, under the motto "Singular Plurality — Singulier Pluriel."

Authors expected in Frankfurt to present their most recent books include Sven Regener, Elke Heidenreich, Johanna Adorjan, Helen MacDonald, Eva Menasse, Emine Sevgi Özdamar, Edgar Selge, Colm Tobin and Aminata Toure.

Numerous book awards

Several literature prizes will be awarded in October as well: the German Book Prize on October 18 and the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade on October 24, which this year goes to Tsitsi Dangarembga, a writer and filmmaker from Zimbabwe.

Last year, the usually bustling halls on the fairgrounds stood empty due to pandemic travel restrictions. The organizers offered digital events and lectures from venues throughout the city of Frankfurt instead.

In 2019, more than 300,000 people attended the book fair to browse and visit some 7,450 exhibitors from 104 countries.

db/eg (dpa, AFP)