October 4-8, 2006. As in previous years, the U.S. Embassy in Germany participated in the Frankfurt International Book Fair, the world's largest and most renowned literary exhibit, to highlight publications and products for schools and libraries as well as specialized services for information professionals and academics. The Frankfurt Book Fair is THE literary event of the year, and an important arena for cultural and political dialogue. This year, it was visited by almost 300,000 eager readers, networkers and knowledge-seekers!
As a tribute to the Guest of Honor, India, the U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt and the State Department in Washington organized a live webchat with Indian American writer Indu Sundaresan, author of the acclaimed The Twentieth Wife and newly released The Splendor of Silence, at the embassy's booth. Students around Germany as well as visitors at the booth took the opportunity to chat with Indu in Washington State who didn't mind to get up at 03:00 in the morning (due to the time difference) to meet her German fans in cyberspace and talk about her books and her impressions of America from the perspective of an immigrant who came to America 16 years ago: "The happiest realization still is that in the U.S. you can be part of the society and still maintain your own ethnic and cultural identity. I am, today, both Indian and American, more effortlessly than in any other country in the world, I think."
As Indu's books have also been published in German by Krueger Verlag, she hopes "to come to Germany sometime soon to read from my novels, and perhaps then can meet some of you in person!" Read full transcript | More about Indu Sundaresan and her writings
The State Department's youth book collection on display at the stand drew the attention of many librarians and visitors, including an Iraqi university professor who helps with the education program in his country and expressed interest in obtaining the collection for local libraries in his region.
Teachers attending the first teachers' congress at the fair came by the booth after the workshops and filled their bags with information materials, signed up for the consulate's teachers' newsletter or made appointments for visits at the U.S. consulate with their classes. Students and kids flocked to the booth to collect American flags, About the USA CD-ROMs and information on studying in the U.S.
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