Kocaeli International Book Fair opens with rare book auction

The 16th International Kocaeli Book Fair has opened at the Kocaeli Congress Center under the theme ‘In the Footsteps of Novels and Memoirs’. Organized by the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality, the event features various cultural activities, including panels, signings, and a special auction of rare works. The auction, involving 30 booksellers, will feature nearly 100 items such as signed books, old periodicals, maps, and historical documents.

Prof. Dr. Ahmed Güner Sayar is the guest of honor for this year's fair. During the opening ceremony, Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Tahir Büyükakın emphasized the importance of language and literature in preserving a city's identity, stating, ‘If there is no language, there is no homeland.’ Kocaeli Governor İlhami Aktaş also highlighted the city's cultural growth and encouraged the habit of gifting books to children.

Preceding the fair, the ‘Trees Opened Books’ event saw 5,000 books distributed from the branches of plane trees in İzmit and Gebze. Officials expect the fair to attract over one million visitors throughout its duration, which runs until October 11.