Glenwood Book Fair attracts scores of visitors
Several books were launched at the inaugural Glenwood Book Fair which drew a large crowd and saw interactive sessions where authors read out some of their works.
THE inaugural Glenwood Book Fair is the talk of the town with organisers and visitors still buzzing about the success of the event that was held at the Phansi Museum from May 29 to 31.
The Glenwood fair was organised by Micromega Publications, the organiser of the Durban International Book Fair, and it drew crowds of over 500 people, including vendors and authors. Anivesh Singh, the organiser, said visitors came from as far afield as Gqeberha, Johannesburg, Chile, and Canada to browse through countless amounts of literature and witness the launch of several books.
“One of the highlights of the event was the standing-room-only launch of Shut Your Pothole, the latest collection of political cartoons by the acclaimed Dr Nanda Soobben. Equally well-received was the launch of Healing Ink, an anthology of poetry written by youth,” said Singh.
Also Read: Healing Ink calls for poetry submissions
The fair coincided with the birthday of Dr Paul Mikula, founder of the Phansi Museum, who was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Durban International Book Fair in 2023. Among those who launched their books was Gordon Michael.
His children’s book, Admiral, tells the tale of Durban’s most famous tortoise, how he ended up at Mitchell Park, and how he got his name. He was in great company as the editor of Healing Ink, 19-year-old Sarada Naidoo, flew in from Gauteng to be part of an interactive session with some of the young contributors reading their poems in public for the first time.
The theme for the Glenwood Book Fair was ‘Bibliotherapy – healing through writing’ which suited Healing Ink, an anthology of poetry by youth on mental health. “The book has a lot of voices that talk about mental health and their personal struggles. I was inspired to focus on mental health because I have been through a lot of issues myself. I struggled to express myself and used my poetry as an outlet. It was not meant to be published but I hope it serves the purpose, to heal and help whoever needs it,” said Naidoo.
With vendors, authors, publishers and visitors singing the praises of the inaugural event, the organisers expressed hope that the Glenwood Book Fair will grow to rival the Grahamstown Arts Festival, with future editions expanding into events and activations throughout the Glenwood area.
For more information or to find out about upcoming events, contact Anivesh Singh on anivesh@mweb.co.za.
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