Georgian literature, prize-winning authors showcased for first time at Athens Book Festival

Georgia is featuring in Athens Book Fair for the first time this year, with authors from the country and translations of its literature being introduced to visitors of an anniversary edition of the event in the Greek capital.

In the gardens of the Zappeion Palace, the 50th fair edition is hosting literature enthusiasts with a "record attendance" of publishing houses, thousands of titles and events involving presentations, discussions and more starting today.

Among participating authors are Beka Adamashvili and Iva Pezuashvili, two Georgian winners of the European Union Prize for Literature, who are set to present their works to readers both at the fair and in other literary spaces of the city, Writers' House of Georgia has said.

Pezuashvili earned the prize earlier this year for his novel A Garbage Chute, while Adamashvili was unveiled as the recipient of the award in 2019, for his work Everybody Dies in the Novel. The two authors will have both individual meetings with readers and sit down with members of the sizeable Georgian diaspora in Greece on a separate occasion.

Beside the two authors, a national stand will host visitors to translations of Georgian literature and presentations of publications, while the Georgian Embassy will host a workshop for those working on translations from Georgian to Greek.

The workshop will involve six translators and discussions on questions in fiction translation, with those involved in the event reviewing select texts in joint sessions.

The Georgian literary programme in the anniversary edition of the fair - which will run through September 18 - is supported by the EU Prize for Literature and the Intelekti Publishing.