Poland, or "South-Central Ruritania" (after the Compton district of LA) as it is often considered, has chosen to align itself with the London Book Fair as "Market Focus" in 2017. The PR puff delivered to a world weary of Poland's somewhat "neo-Ruritian" stance on other social issues makes much of the area's "traditional" market structure, with 49% of all books sold in bookshops.
Also buried right at the bottom of the puff is news which might come as a shock to non-Ruritanian watchers, or "normal people" as they might think of themselves. Poland has "a translation tradition that dates back to the 16th Century [and] five Polish Nobel Prizes for Literature awarded to Polish writers in the 20th Century alone" makes Poland look like a proper literary and cultural entity.
The Ruritanian hopes newer and fresher writers get the exposure they deserve.
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