From the Red Line: a book fair has started near the walls of the Kremlin

Long queues at the entrance, regular poetry readings, an opening concert with Sergei Garmash and Yuri Bashmet, and mobile libraries. The Red Square Book Fair has started in the very heart of the capital. Until June 7, it will be possible to buy new literature at very attractive prices at the Kremlin walls, get autographs from your favorite writers, and visit (for free!) poetry readings, performances and presentations. Izvestia appreciated the scale of the event and the public's interest in it on the very first day.

The queue is not at the Mausoleum

On the morning of June 4, tourists who wanted to get to Red Square were discouraged by the huge queues lining up at the metal detectors. From Okhotny Ryad, the queue stretched all the way from the Iverskaya Chapel and all the way to the GUM, where an inspection was organized. Serious security measures, especially in such a place, are an inevitable decision. But in this case, the pandemonium also indicates an interest in the event itself. Most people came to the fair, not just to take a walk.

Yes, Red Square is not the only such large—scale event for book lovers. Twice a year, another non—fiction fair takes place very nearby (in Gostiny Dvor), and in terms of the number of stands, new products and high-profile premieres, it is not inferior at all, maybe even vice versa. However, admission to non—fiction is paid, whereas Red Square is open to everyone.

And the second factor. Most of the non-fiction events are book presentations. Which, of course, is interesting for bibliophiles, but it is unlikely to attract a wide audience. While "Red Square" relies on concerts, performances and poetry readings. Moreover, the program is structured in such a way that, if desired, you can spend the whole day at the fair, switching between two stages and many tents.

A weighty "Word"

This year's opening concert featured "The Word of Igor's Regiment", a dramatic symphony by Alexander Tchaikovsky for reciter, viola, symphony and folk orchestras. All the seats in the makeshift stalls opposite St. Basil's Cathedral were occupied long before the start of the event, but to be among the audience, it was enough just to get closer: the musicians of the orchestra "New Russia" (including solo viola Yuri Bashmet) and the folk ensemble "Russia" named Lyudmila Zykina played using microphones, and a close-up Sergei Garmash, who was reading an ancient text, was broadcast on a big screen.

In the following days, the audience will see a dance and poetic performance by former Bolshoi ballerina Alyona Ledyakh, an artistic and literary program by the actresses of the Modern Theater based on the book Leningrad Speaks by Olga Bergholts, a musical and poetic composition by Sati Spivakova "And here in the post-war Silence ..." dedicated to women poets who survived the war, an ethno concert- electropunk from Kalmykia. These are just a few items from the list of stage performances that combine a wide variety of genres and art forms.

However, poetry became the focus of attention. For the first time, a separate tent has been allocated for it. Although the poems on Red Square are heard not only in it, but everywhere: they are read from both scenes, discussed in public talks, quoted during presentations at publishing houses. Moreover, if military lyrics dominate here in the first two days ("Poetry to the Front", "Poetry of the Russian Winter"), then June 6 will be marked by Pushkin, and on the 7th the name of Yesenin, whose 100th anniversary is celebrated this year, will be especially often heard.

Of course, we have not forgotten another hero of the day from the classics of the XX century — Mikhail Sholokhov. The first day ended with the musical performance "The Quiet Don" with the participation of Nadezhda Babkina and Mikhail Gorevoy, and on the second day the publishing house "Molodaya Gvardiya" will present a new eight-volume collection of the writer's works, which, however, could be bought on June 4. But it would be wrong to think that the fair is focused on classics and generally has some kind of obvious thematic bias. The latest fiction and nonfiction, children's books and professional publications — everything found a place in the relatively small space between the Mausoleum and GUM. There is even a separate large tent occupied by comic book stands: also, in a sense, a sign of the times.

How to get to the libraries

Among other things, it was impossible not to pay attention to the long row of regional stands. Each of them was designated by a specific region — Kirov, Magadan, Sverdlovsk, and so on, and among the books that lay on the shelves were both tourist-oriented publications (sights of cities, guides, and the like), as well as quite serious works on ethnography, local museums, and history. It is clear that this is a social rather than a commercial decision to present the widest possible range of books from the hinterland. But, however, many publishing houses located far from Moscow and St. Petersburg, in principle, do not have many chances to bring their works to readers in the capital. Well, readers, accordingly, can purchase them at no extra charge for delivery. So everyone wins.

It's too early to judge sales, but publishers are already noticing a lot of interest.

— Red Square is probably the main book exhibition of the year. Even though it's a weekday, it's already crowded. When I hear that there is little reading in Russia, I want to say: "Come here, look at how many people, including young people, how their eyes are burning, how actively they buy new products, and classics too," Alexey Ionov, a leading brand manager at AST publishing house, shared with Izvestia.

By the way, other Izvestia interlocutors also spoke about the number of young readers. Well, at the stand of the Library of Moscow, new bibliophiles, attracted by big names and beautiful covers, were actively "converted" into regular book readers: here you can issue a reader's ticket without leaving the ticket office and immediately take one of the books with you. Plus, participate in sweepstakes. In the end, the festival will end, but the love of reading will remain.