Barbara Šundov: ‘Interest from Writers and Audiences in Vrisak Is Exceptional’

Vrisak has become one of the region’s most important literary festivals, according to its program coordinator, Barbara Šundov. The 19th edition of Rijeka’s book fair and authors’ festival opens on Sept. 12, and interest from writers and publishers remains strong.

Šundov told Večernji list that the festival’s program had already been completed in early June, yet authors and publishers were still calling as recently as a week before the interview to ask whether places remained. She described building the program as a demanding task, requiring organizers to choose books that appear representative and timely, reflect current literary trends, and still offer variety for every part of the audience.

The festival also has programs for younger children and secondary-school students. Šundov said the youngest visitors form its most energetic and perhaps most curious audience. At each Vrisak Junior event, she said, children open the program with a powerful, piercing scream as they look forward to meeting authors and discovering new and exciting books.

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I think Vrisak is now one of the most important literary festivals in the region.

Secondary-school students attend the programs organized for them in significant numbers, while older visitors form another large and important group. Many return each year and attend most of the events, becoming what Šundov called proven friends of Vrisak.

Šundov said Vrisak did not play a decisive role in her own upbringing, despite her early interest in literature. She attributed that partly to the lack of major literary festivals and cultural events in the part of Dalmatia where she grew up. For young people today, she said, such events are highly valuable and deserve to be supported and preserved.

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Such events are extremely important and valuable, and we should do everything to nurture and preserve them.