2nd BOOK FAIR IN ISTRIA
Book Cult at an Ancient Square

2nd – 11th December 1996
Forum Square: Gallery Capitolium, Gallery Diana 

"Book Cult at the Ancient Square" – in this somewhat smug and bombastic manner, the organizers announced the Second Book Fair in Istria. Along with the publishers who participated in the first Fair, there were twenty-some newcomers. Program-wise, the second edition of the Fair reflected the wish of the organizers that this event transcends the form of the commercial display of books and becomes a place for book presentation and a meeting point for the members of the literary scene. The first book promotion of the Fair took place on 3rd December 1996 at 11:00, in front of the Augustus Temple, in the open. The public presentation of the Croatian General Lexicon, with Tomislav Ladan and August Kovačec as hosts, was the first in the line of fifty-some book promotions that took place during the first six years of Fair's existence. 

The same year, the first exhibition of the Fair took place. It was the presentation of the engravings made by Marina Banić for the book If You Say Yes.

In that post-war era, when many publishers didn't even have a proper list of their titles, the Fair had a catalog with a precise list of all the displayed books. During ten days, the Fair was attended by more than 30,000 book lovers.