the VIII international literature festival odesa was held in Batumi, Georgia from October 5 to 8, 2022. One of the main themes of this year’s festival was Russia’s war against Ukraine and its impact on the world. A kind of literary bridge of friendship and solidarity was stretched from one part of the Black Sea to another.
The festival was organized by the Peter Weiss Foundation for Art and Politics (Germany), the Literature Initiative Georgia and Books in Batumi Publishing. The festival was held with the support of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (Germany), the Jan Michalski Foundation (Switzerland), the international literature festival berlin (ilb), the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of Autonomous Republic of Adjara, Batumi City Hall, Prohelvetia (Switzerland) and Batumi State University.
Batumi, as a long-standing partner of Odesa, hosted Ukrainian, Georgian, German, Swiss, Polish, Romanian, Turkish, Italian and other international authors and participants. The festival program included joint Georgian-Ukrainian poetry readings, a children’s literature program, presentations of new novels, discussions and a translation workshop. A special reading for Ukrainian refugee children will also be organized.