The annual South African Book Fair kicks off at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Friday 13 June until Sunday 15 June, providing book lovers and casual readers with the opportunity to attend a literature experience of a lifetime.   Send an email answering the following question to samantha@sabooksellers.com and  stand a chance to win two complimentary tickets to this exciting event: Name three prestigious exhibitors that you can  expect to see at the 2014 SABF Read more

The Franschhoek literary festival in Mid May this year was its usual feast of literary delights, presenting 170 authors, journalists and subject specialists in more than 100 events over three days. Literary enthusiasts enjoyed listening to many of South Africa’s best writers, all with new books.

“At the time of writing and before we receive the final figures which will include tickets sold at the festival itself, about 80% of the available tickets had been sold. What was unprecedented was the rate at which tickets sold in the first week or two after they became available – almost double the number that sold in the same period in 2013. This is a clear indication of the growing awareness and popularity of the festival,” deputy director Ann Donald told Bookmark.

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The Author Hub at BookExpo America (BEA) is the annual event’s first effort to follow its sister London Book Fair in creating a specific site on the trade-show floor for entrepreneurial authors. It operates this week in its inaugural iteration under the auspices of Saturday’s uPublishU Conference at BEA. Unlike the London edition of the concept — which functions as a sort of drop-in lounge with seminars and demonstrations — the BEA Author Hub is a working center in which authors have bought their memberships, either Basic or Premium. Read Porter Anderson’s report on what attendees can expect from Book Expo America this week.

Writing in The New York Review of Books, Robert Darnton takes a comprehensive look at what he calls the “world digital library.” After examining the world of scientific and academic journals, where the numbers are simply overwhelming, he investigates several companies working to make books accessible. It is a compelling read full of fascinating information. Darnton writes that we are coming closer to a truly international digital public library citing Open Access movements in the UK, UK and France.

Nal’ibali launched a Charter on Children’s Literacy Rights on World Book Day, Wednesday April 23, 2014.
The charter, freely available in all 11 official South African languages as a poster or download, highlights the range of literacy experiences all children should have to enable them to learn to read and write.

Members of the public are encouraged to download a copy of the charter in any language from the Nal’ibali website, www.nalibali.org or email info@nalibali.org to request a copy.