Frankfurt Preview: Frankfurt Welcomes Back the World

"We expect there to be much the same feeling as there was at the fair before the pandemic," says Frankfurt Book FairWorld's largest trade fair for books; held annually mid-October at Frankfurt Trade Fair, Germany; First three days exclusively for trade visitors; general public can attend last two. director Juergen Boos, who estimates attendance will be 70% of that of 2019. "While many publishers have adapted to doing business digitally, people seem to need to be in Frankfurt to meet face-to-face." The German government, which continues to support the fair with financial subsidies it began providing in 2020, has lifted restrictions demanding mask wearing and social distancing and, Boos adds, no new mandates will be imposed, provided there is no obvious crisis.

This year's book fair is focusing on the topic of translation. "It is the only way for words to make their way out into the world and is the basis for the rights and licensing business and for understanding between cultures," Boos notes.