With its vibrant design, the Israeli booth at the 32nd Hong Kong Book Fair was one of the biggest and most attractive among the hundreds of local and international exhibitors. The seven-day event opened on July 20 and was the first major event to open to the general public following the city’s fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Hong Kong Book Fair, organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, is held each summer at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. It is a major event in Hong Kong, and the number of visitors in attendance has reached one million in recent years.
Regarded as the biggest and most beloved cultural event among locals, the Fair promotes local reading culture and bookselling, with diversified activities facilitating cultural exchange with foreign countries.
Since 2014, Israel has started to contribute its part to enrich the cultural diversity of the Fair, not only with the introduction of Israeli and Hebrew literature and all types of books, but also with free educational and fun activities to engage with the visitors.
This year, the theme of the Fair was “History and Literature.” Books allow readers to travel through time and space, learning to cherish the present and look to the future. Israel is full of history and culture and had much to offer not only in the booth but also on stage, including a travel seminar with live streaming from Masada and the Dead Sea, and another seminar on the Holocaust.
The Israeli pavilion displayed dozens of Israeli books translated into Chinese and English.
Amir Lati, Consul General of the State of Israel to Hong Kong and Macao, said that Israel’s participation in this important event enabled Israel to make its history, innovation and spirit accessible to many Asian readers.