Book festival brings to life classic roles, new journal

The ongoing ninth Beijing October Literature Festival offers readers a feast of books and culture, with a variety of activities held until the end of October.

As one of the supplementary activities of the 2024 Beijing Culture Forum, the event is themed "literature embraces the times, reading illuminates lives".

It has gathered literary resources of the capital as well as neighboring Tianjin municipality and Hebei province. For the first time, the festival is being held at a subvenue in Shanghai concurrently.

More than 60 activities including books launches, literary workshops and exhibitions will take place during the festival to promote high-quality literary creation, public participation and international exchanges, organizers said.

These will cover not only bookstores and schools across the city, but diverse cultural spaces and online platforms, they added.

During the opening ceremony on Sept 7, Beijing Publishing Group announced the launch of the journal Beijing Review and signed contracts with 12 literary critics.

It is the city's first journal focusing on literary criticism. It aims to provide new impetus for the capital's literary and culture sector, said staff members from the enterprise.

Three young authors were honored during the ceremony, as recipients of a supporting program co-founded by the famous writer Wang Meng.

Following the ceremony was the 2024 Beijing Literature Forum, where scholars and writers from Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei delved into the literary achievements in the three regions over the past decade.

The festival also features an array of cultural activities involving the city's cultural landmarks and heritage including the Yongding River, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and the Beijing Central Axis, which was officially inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in July.

Compared with previous sessions, the festival's "international communication" segment has been improved this year, in order to foster mutual learning and understanding among different civilizations, organizers said.

In addition to lectures and workshops, upcoming events include discussions among international students, dialogues between domestic and foreign authors, and activities allowing participants to experience Beijing culture.

Four female writers including Li Zishu from Malaysia, Gong Ji-young from South Korea as well as Qiao Ye and Liao Jing from China will share their insights on the portrayal of the power of women in Asian literature.

Another highlight of the festival is the "October night of literature". Classic works such as Teahouse written by Lao She (1899-1966), Thunderstorm by Cao Yu (1910-1996) and I and the Temple of Earth by Shi Tiesheng (1951-2010) are to take to the stage, enabling audiences to feel the charm of such masterpieces through recital and performance.