“This could not be done in any other city in Germany”
25 years ago the reading festival “Leipzig reads” took place for the first time. It started as an initiative of the Club Bertelsmann with 80 participants and 160 events. In its anniversary year, “Leipzig reads” presented itself as Europe’s biggest and most diverse reading festival with 3.000 participants in 3.200 events at 410 locations. On the occasion of the anniversary, the Leipzig Book Fair hosted a gala evening in the newly renovated KONGRESSHALLE at the Leipzig Zoo. More than a thousand people listened to the newly awarded laureate of the Leipzig Book Fair Prize, Guntram Vesper, as well as to Clemens Meyer and Christoph Hein. Author Christoph Hein has attended the reading festival since its beginning. His conclusion: “It is a great event both for readers and authors. I am always completely amazed, 100, 150 events every night – and each one is packed. This could not be done in any other city in Germany.”
