The 8th Dominican Book Fair in New York was dedicated to writer Rei Berroa

The 8th Dominican Book Fair in New York was dedicated to writer Rei Berroa
New York, June 30, 2014

Because of his outstanding career as a writer and cultural manager, and his great contributions to Dominican literature through his essays and poetic work, the 8th Dominican Book Fair in New York will be dedicated to Dominican writer and Professor Rei Berroa, who lives in Virginia, United States.

The announcement was made by the Dominican Commissioner of Culture in the United States, Mr. Carlos Sánchez, who called Rei Berroa “a singular voice in Dominican poetry, a renowned essayist, scholar and translator, who has 40 published works.”

“Dr. Rei Berroa, winner of the International Trieste Poetry Award, has been a literary adviser to Teatro de la Luna in Arlington since its establishment in 1991, and every year he also coordinates and directs the Poetry Marathon, which consists of two days of poetry readings at the Library of Congress in Washington, as well as at Teatro de la Luna and other cultural sites in the U.S. capital, Sánchez said. “Poets from the Spanish-speaking countries, including the Dominican Republic, gather at the festival, and it is one of the most important poetry events in the nation that take place in Spanish,” Sánchez said.

On the occasion of the 8th Dominican Book Fair in New York, to be held on September 26, 27 and 28 at the Gregorio Luperon public school, in Manhattan, there will be a discussion with Rei Berroa. A book by the esteemed writer will also be released. The book will be published by Editora Nacional, of the Ministry of Culture of the Dominican Republic, through the Dominican Commissioner of Culture in the United States.

In addition, the 8th Book Fair will be dedicated to Dominican writers living in the metropolitan area of Washington, D.C. A special tribute will be paid to writers of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States.

The event, considered the most momentous that has been conducted abroad by the Ministry of Culture of the Dominican Republic, through the office of the Dominican Commissioner of Culture in the United States, will open on Friday, September 26th, at the Gran Teatro United Palace, with a tribute to the Dominican folklore and popular music.

The slogan of the fair will be: “The book is the best friend”. Every year thousands of people visit the book fair and it provides the U.S. Spanish-speaking communities the opportunity to come into contact with the large, varied and rich Dominican literature.

The fair will comprise several pavilions where innovative events will take place. Writer Elizabeth Balaguer will be in charge of the Children’s Pavilion where there will be fun activities for children; the Cinema Pavilion, directed by actress Mariluz Acosta, will host a sample of Dominican short films, and several other activities related to cinema; and, the Craft Pavilion, led by Mercedes Polanco, will host Dominican artisans and craftsmen from other Latin American countries.

In addition, the Historical Memory Pavilion, led by activist Roberto Castillo, will host panels and lectures on Dominican history; and the Young Expression Pavilion, directed by actress Angie Regina, will host workshops, lectures and discussions.

“The winners of the literature competition for high school students will also be announced. This competition took place under the coordination of writer Rubén Sánchez Felix,” Sánchez said. “Our goal is to encourage these high school kids to nurture the wonderful world of literature and to visit and participate in the fair,” he said.

On Saturday, September 27th, and Sunday, September 28th, starting at 9 a.m., the exhibition and sale of books and the arts and cultural activities will open at the Gregorio Luperon school, located at 501 West 165 Street, in Upper Manhattan. The closing of the fair will be held on Sunday, September 28th, at 8 p.m., in the auditorium of the Dominican Commissioner of Culture, located at 541 West 145th Street, in Manhattan.

“This celebration of books and culture is a plural event, where attendees will enjoy the reading of texts, book presentations, conferences and literary discussions. We will also have concrete areas dedicated to plastic arts, crafts, theater, films, folklore, recitals and Quisqueyan music,” said the Commissioner.

Sánchez informed that the only thing that writers, booksellers, academics, arts organizations, academic campuses and cultural groups wishing to participate in the fair have to do is contact the Commissioner’s office, located at 541 West 145th Street, 2nd. Floor, near the corner of Broadway, in Manhattan, phone: (212) 234-8149.

Those wishing to participate as exhibitors in the fair must fill out the entry form and send it to the Commissioner’s office. The deadline for registration expires on August 16, 2014, at 5 pm.

“We invite the community to continue supporting massively the Dominican Book Fair in New York as it has always done. We also invite writers to participate as exhibitors and volunteers, to work together with us on the operational side,” Sánchez said.

For more information, please call (212) 234-8149.

BIOGRAPHY

REI BERROA (Gurabo, Dominican Republic, 1949). He is the author of 40 books of poetry, poetic collections, translations and literary criticism. His books of poetry include: Son palomas pensajeras (forthcoming, Santo Domingo, 2013); Fortunario insólito para convivir con lengua y unas cuantas cicatrices (Monterrey, 2014), Libro de los dones y los bienes (Mexico, 2014, Caracas, 2010); Eufemistica per vivere tranquilli (Trieste, Italy, 2011); Otridades (Zamora, Spain, 2010), selected among the 10 books recommended by the Association of Publishers of Poetry in Spain; De adinamia de mente de umnesia (Villahermosa, 2010), award-winning in the First Contest on Azheimer and Memory in Murcia, Spain; Libro de los fragmentos y otros poemas [Caracas, 2007, was sold out the same day it was released], and Book of Fragments [Calcutta, India, 1993] (translation of his book of fragments [Buenos Aires, 1988]). Among his books of literary criticism, we point out: Cuerpo que crece y nos fractura: poéticas de maternidades otras (in press, Caracas 2014); Ideología y retórica: las prosas de guerra de Miguel Hernández (Mexico, 1988), and Aproximaciones a la literatura dominicana, 2 volumes (Santo Domingo, 2008 and 2009). Editorial Maùcho (Villahermosa, Mexico) released Jerarquías in 2009 on CD with a selected collection of his poetry. He has participated in international poetry festivals in Mexico, Medellin (Colombia), Cuba, Recife (Brazil), Salamanca (Spain), Izmir (Turkey), Granada (Nicaragua) and Caracas (Venezuela), among other countries. In 2009 he received the “Medaille de Vermeil” from the French Academy of Arts, Sciences and Letters. In 2011 he received the Trieste International Poetry Prize for his lifetime poetry work, and in 2012 the Romanian Mihai Eminescu Award.