11th BOOK FAIR(Y) IN ISTRIA
Pula Festival of Books and Authors

Theme: Crime Novel

1st – 10th December 2005
House of Croatian Defenders

In the spirit of the central theme of the 11th Book Fair in Istria – the Crime Novel - the grand opening started with a gunshot at noon and the first murder directed by Matija Ferlin. Jadranka Đokić, Vojo Šiljak, and police inspectors Dr. Fric and Vlado introduced the audience to the world of crime novels, whereas the director of the Book Fair, Magdalena Vodopija, unveiled the reality of the Fair. The crime genre might have taken over the TV series and films, but it has never disappeared from the bookstores and publishing houses. On the contrary, many of them survived because of it. Many local and foreign authors participated in the program Do Not Shoot at the Author: Veit Heinichen, William Lashner, Nicolas Remin, Feđa Šehović, Andrej Kurkov, Edo Popović, Mima Simić...

A notable novelty of the Fair's program was A Talk Behind a Curtain, a program format intended for all those striving for non-trivial literature, expert talks, scientific discussions, intellectual wisecracks, and new book arrivals covering the whole spectrum of human thought.

Nonetheless, the most interesting was the informal sect dedicated to the hedonistic rituals – "Utorkaši/Tuesdayers“ – composed of journalists and writers from Split who usually gather in the tavern Hvaranin on Tuesdays, but on this occasion they moved to restaurant Kantina in Pula. The "Tuesdayers“ wrote a collection of stories specifically for this occasion, titled Our Ancestors. It was crafted as a bibliophilic edition, published in only 144 numbered copies, signed by the authors, and certified with the publisher's stamp. The first copy is jealously guarded in the Book Fair(y) archive, whereas the last copy has its special place in the tavern Hvaranin in Split.

The Kiklop Award ceremony took place in the new hall of the Aruba Club on the 7th of December at 21:00.