A children’s book conference at the book fair

The program “Frankfurt Kids” on October 16th will cover topics such as children’s book publications, social responsibility and accessibility.

At the Frankfurt Book Fair 2017, Hall 3. Image: FBM, Fernando Baptista

By Porter Anderson, Editor in Chief | @Porter_Anderson

See also: David Shelley and Arnaud Nourry headline the Frankfurt Publishing Perspectives Forum

Author Cornelia Funke gives keynote speech

AWhen the ticket shop opens on Monday (July 8), the program information for the Frankfurt Book Fair (October 16 to 20) will be published. Trade visitors who are interested in children’s books can already look forward to the conference on children’s and young adult books on Wednesday, October 16, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CEST. The venue is the Spektrum room on level 2 of the Congress Center (directly at the end of Hall 5.0).

Tickets for the half-day conference cost €226.10 including VAT (US$244) and are now available on EventBrite.

Germany’s best-known children’s book author Cornelia Funke will open the program with a keynote speech. Funke currently lives in the guest of honor Italy in the walled city of Volterra south of Florence. She began her writing career in Hamburg and initially worked as an illustrator before turning to writing.

• Ken Wilson-Max, Publisher, HarperCollins UK / Kumusha Books
• Karine Pansa, President of the International Publishers Association (IPA) and publisher of children’s books at Girassol Brazil
• Ani Rosa Almario, Vice President of Product Development, Adarna House, Philippines
• Carolina Ballester, Managing Director, IBBY
• Dominique Raccah, CEO, Founder and Publisher of Sourcebooks, USA
• Åsa Bergman, Head of Office, Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award
• Paolo Canton, Publisher, Topipittori, Italy
• Ivan Fedechko, Rights Sales Manager, Old Lion Publishing House, Ukraine
• Daniela Filthaut, Managing Director, Gerstenberg Verlag, Germany

Notes on programming

The most important elements of the program are divided into three panels after Funke’s keynote at 9:15 a.m.

9 am.: Peace is our responsibility. “Panelists will share the values ​​that make a difference in children’s publishing and discuss the importance of values ​​and diversity in children’s books to contribute to a more inclusive and peaceful world.”

10:30 am: Books without barriers: Accessibility in publishing.”How can we ensure that all children, wherever they live and regardless of their circumstances, have access to books?”

11:15 am: Coffe break

11:30 am: Responsibility in children’s book publishing: What does that mean? This session will explore “what it means to publish children’s books responsibly, from creating a transparent publishing program and responsible public relations to publishing books in translation and ensuring that books cross borders.”

12:15 p.m.: Breakout tables with different topics: At a table on sustainability, for example, Rachel Martin, Global Director of Sustainability at Elsevier, leads the discussion. Other topics include accessibility and disability, people of color and the responsibility of authors.

Author and translator Lawrence Schimel will host the program. All proceeds from ticket sales for this event will be donated to Doctors Without Borders / Doctors Without Borders.

At the Frankfurt Book Fair 2007. Photo: FBM, Peter Hirth

For more information from Publishing Perspectives on publishing children’s and young adult books, click here, for more on international publishing conferences, click here, and for more on the Frankfurt Book Fair, click here.