International Book Fair Scholarship Application Now Open

Europa Editions has joined forces with Other Press to expand the International Book Fair Scholarship for U.S. Booksellers, first awarded in 2016 to a single bookseller. This year, scholarships will send three American booksellers on an all-expenses-paid trip to Italy for the 2017 Turin Book Fair, which will take place from May 18–22.

The purpose of the International Book Fair Scholarship (IBS) program is to connect American booksellers to the greater world of international book publishing, to bridge bookselling cultures around the world, and to foster a sense of global citizenship among booksellers and book industry professionals, said IBS Coordinator Sophia Franchi of Europa Editions.

In the scholarship’s second year, said Franchi, “we are looking forward to building on this experience and thinking bigger and better with Other as our partner.” Other Press publishes novels, short stories, poetry, and essays from America and around the world.

The first IBS scholarship, awarded by Europa Editions in October 2016, sent Ariana Paliobagis, owner of The Country Bookshelf in Bozeman, Montana, to Germany for the Frankfurt Book Fair. Paliobagis wrote about the inaugural trip in a piece for LitHub: “I have been greeted as family by all the extended Europa clan. I was humbled by their keen interest in my work and the respect I was given, reminding me of the importance — easily overshadowed — of the bookseller.”

Europa encourages booksellers who are interested in international literature and fostering relationships with the international bookselling community to apply. Scholarships include travel, accommodation, and per diem.

For more information and to apply, booksellers should visit the scholarship website or call (212) 868-6844.