John Scalzi, Netherlands, guests of honour at Budapest International Book Festival

American sci-fi writer John Scalzi and the Netherlands will be the guests of honour at this year’s International Book Festival held between September 28 and October 1 in Budapest, the association of Hungarian publishers and book sellers (MKKE) said on Wednesday.

Scalzi, who was elected president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2010, will receive the Grand Award of Budapest from the city’s mayor at the festival, MKKE said in a statement. So far 14 titles of the author have been published in Hungarian.

The festival’s guest of honour country, The Netherlands, will be represented by writer-journalist Arnon Grunberg, the author of The Man Without Illness, and Annamare Bon, the widely popular author in youth literature. Programmes at the festival’s Dutch stand will include thematic talks, round-table discussions and recitals from books. A special focus will be devoted to literary translations and the profession of book illustrations.

In partnership with PesText, the festival will also host Italian writer Alessandro Baricco, who will attend the presentation of the Grand Literary Award at the festival’s opening event. He will also meet readers at a book signing event.

More information here.