Date |
Event |
| 2010-01-28 | The winners of 29th National Cultural Award were announced. 96-year-old calligrapher Kuang-Pin Chang, famous writer Chun-Ming Hwang and "Father of Modern Taiwan Block Prints," Shiou-Ping Liao are all winners. Each one will be awarded NT$ 1 million. Chun-Ming Hwang and Shiou-Ping Liao both won the National Arts Award together more than 10 years ago, and again both won the National Cultural Award together this time, so they called each other "classmate" happily. Kuang-Pin Chang, known as the "living dictionary of history of calligraphy and painting of the Yuan Dynasty", said he followed his dream all of his life and the most meaningful thing in life is to follow one's dream. In recent years, he spare no effort in promoting calligraphy. Council for Cultural Affairs will use the whole year to honor contributions of the three winners through documentaries, seminars and other forms. |
| 2010-01-27 | 2010 Taipei International Book Exhibition is held from January 27th to February 1st at World Trade Center, Hall 1, 2 and 3 for six days. France will be the Guest of Honor at TIBE 2010. This year's book fair showed outstanding achievements in the international cultural exchanges. There are exhibitors from 58 countries which is a brilliant record. There are 883 publishers participate this year's TIBE with display of more than one million books. Among all exhibitors, 376 are domestic publishers, and 507 are foreign. The performance of international zone is remarkable. 120 US publishers bring the nation's 500 best-selling books for show. 55 Japanese publishers display Japanese contemporary fiction, crafts and other useful books. 12 South Korea publishers present Korean features and invite play writers to Taiwan to give lectures. 35 publishers from 14 countries in Africa arrange grand exhibition in international zone at Hall 1. |
| 2010-01-20 | The semiannual selection of Akutagawa Prize and the Naoki Prize has always been a major event of Japan's literary circle. The committee, however, did not select a winner of the Akutagawa Prize on the 14th, making the Japanese literary circle and the media outcry, because it is the first time no prize awarded since the 121st selection in 1999. The 142nd Naoki Prize, Japan's prestigious literary award for popular literature, was given to Joh Sasaki and Kazufumi Shiraishi. Juror Natsuki Ikezawa said the reason that the jurors found no winner for this session of Akutagawa Prize is "a lack of love from the nominated works, this is precisely the premise of writing fiction." |
| 2010-01-20 | Beijing Disanji Book Limited Company issues mobile phone text message on the 18th to announce the company's decision to cease operation on January 20, 2010. Many menebers felt surprised when received this message and there are rumors in the industry. The staff of the company confirmed this matter, but had no certain answer to whether what the company said "we will notice when and where to open" means its re-opening at another location. Mainland media reported that this huge bookstore experience a series events of grand opening, price war, relocating, to current closure within a short three and a half years. Iits management staff also changed several times. By the end of last November, Guan Po, general manager of Disanji at that time, and other senior managers left. In October, Disanji Bookstore once known as Beijing's largest bookstore quietly moved away from the old site to the basement floor of Haohai Building, that is, location of origin Guo Lin Feng bookstore. |
| 2010-01-12 | Eight non-professional children books publishing houses in Mainland China established "The Chinese Children's Books Alliance" in Beijing to join hands to promote children's books' publishing and reading. There are 512 children's book publishers in China. Publications of 34 professional children's books publishers account for about 30% market share. Publications of non-professional children's books publishers hold about 70% market share. In order to promote publishing and reading of children's books, The Publishers Association of China decided to establish two platforms, one is for professional children's books publishers and one is for non-professional children's books publishers. In the future, in addition to realize the functions of professional children's books publishing platform, the alliance will hold the Chinese Children's Books Alliance Book Fair once a year, as well as children's book awards. The alliance will also hold seminars to exchange opinions on publication reform, management, development of topics, book quality, team-building, and social issues, and actively promote international cooperation and exchanges of children's books publishing industry. |