2009年7月16日星期四

Hong Kong’s Book Fair Turns a New (and Larger) Page

"Hong Kong’s Book Fair Turns a New (and Larger) Page | AboutHK.Com - more information about HK"

Julie Makinen

Looking to connect with Hong Kong’s literary side? Or perhaps you’re just hoping to add some last-minute summer reads to your collection. Then mark your calendars for the city’s massive annual book fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (1 Expo Drive, Wan Chai; 852-1830-670), which kicks off next Wednesday, July 22, and runs through the 28th.

This is the 20th anniversary of the event, and it promises to be bigger than last year’s version, with one-third more exhibition space, thanks to the recent expansion of the city’s convention center. The 2008 fair attracted nearly 830,000 visitors over seven days, and organizers are anticipating even larger crowds this year, despite the city’s share of the global economic downturn.

Hong Kong’s Book Fair Turns a New (and Larger) Page

While most of the event is devoted to Chinese-language materials, English books will get special attention this year, with 50 booths in the “English Avenue” section. Also new for 2009 is a multimedia area featuring e-book readers, audio-visual learning aids and educational software. Overall, 500 exhibitors from 19 regions and countries — including newcomers from Brazil, Italy and the United Arab Emirates — will be on hand.

One “attraction” of past book fairs may or may not be making an appearance this year: the so-called “pseudo models” promoting picture books of themselves dressed in skimpy outfits. These are young women in their late teens and early 20’s; they harbor model aspirations, but are too short for catwalk work. Nevertheless, they attract legions of fans to their autograph sessions — so much so that some 30,000 people recently signed an online petition complaining that the fair is being “sexed up” and urging organizers to ban the models. So far, organizers have shown little inclination to shut them out, saying they don’t violate the city’s obscenity laws.

The exhibition will be open from 10 a.m to 10 p.m., 10 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday. Adult admission to the fair is 25 Hong Kong dollars (about $3.23), while children and overseas visitors pay 10 Hong Kong dollars (about $1.29; bring your passport and visa for the traveler’s discount). If you are a real bookworm, a Book Lover Super Pass is available for 80 Hong Kong dollar (about $10.32); it guarantees unlimited admission and is available via advance purchase; check the Web site for more information.

Comments

Please login to post comments or replies.

没有评论:

发表评论