Gothenburg Book Fair
Annual book fair in Gothenburg, Sweden
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Gothenburg Book Fair (also known as Göteborg Book Fair, Bok & Bibliotek, Bok- och biblioteksmässan or Bokmässan) is an annual event held in Gothenburg, Sweden, since 1985.[1][2]
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Overview
The first Gothenburg Book Fair, then known as Bibliotek 85, occurred in 1985.[3]
It started primarily as a trade fair (for librarians and teachers), but is now the largest literary festival in Scandinavia and the second largest book fair in Europe after the Frankfurt Book Fair.[4] The book fair usually takes place in the last week of September each year. It has around 100,000 visitors and 900 exhibitors annually.[1][5] It was reported in 2004 that the fair generated 170 million SEK of revenue for the city of Gothenburg.[6]
In 2017, 127 authors signed a petition in Dagens Nyheter stating they would be boycotting the book fair due to the participation of far-right newspaper Nya Tider.[3] The book fair received about 25% less visitors in 2017, which was attributed to the boycott and concerns about a Nordic Resistance Movement (NMR) march planned in close proximity.[7] Several NMR members were later put on trial for trying to break through the barriers at the fair.[8]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival was held virtually in 2020.[9][10]
There was controversy in 2025 after fair talks were advertised by the Sweden–Israel Friendship Association under the titles of "Den fabricerade svälten i Gaza" (English: The fabricated famine in Gaza) and "UNRWA – länken mellan terror och FN?" (English: UNRWA – the link between terrorism and the UN?). The titles were changed after criticism.[11]
