KOCHI: The 26th edition of the Kochi International Book Festival (KIBF), which is now underway, will host the much-anticipated Kochi Literature Festival on Wednesday at Ernakulathappan Grounds.

The event will be opened by Kannada writer Dr. H S Siva Prakash, and the guest of honor will be former KPSC chairman Dr. K S Radhakrishnan. The keynote speaker will be K Sachidanandan, president of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi. This year’s theme is “Celebrating Word Power.”

More than 200 authors and publishers are expected to attend the event. Director of KIBF, Advocate M Sasisankar, says,“We aim to promote emerging writers of different age groups by providing workshops and a platform for book releases. We expect the release of over 50 books.” 

Houses are there with their stalls, giving the highly praised celebration an additional layer of appeal. Among these, the National Book Trust (NBT) is noteworthy. The significance of letter writing as a lovely and personal form of expression was emphasized during its training. Preetika Dubey, an editorial associate at NBT’s National Centre for Children’s Literature, states, “We want children to start writing letters.”

The fest aims to provide youngsters more accessibility and exposure to books. “The notion that reading is declining amongst youngsters is far from the truth,” says Nimmy Abraham of Manorama Books. This is quite evident, says KIBF president E N Nandakumar. “We expect a total footfall of over one lakh,” he says. The book fest concludes on December 10 (Sunday).