George Town Literary Festival wins The Literary Festival Award at The London Book Fair 2018
“This is a win for culture, for literature, for free speech and expression. This is a win for discourse, diversity and conversation. This is a win for Penang, for George Town, for all who love literary festivals and for all who love our festival. This is a win for Malaysia, for what we are, and what we can be. This is a win for all, for all of us who love the word and what it represents to us, to SE Asia, to the world. This is a huge honour for the work we have done, and the work that we will continue to do. Thank you ALL so very, very much,”
Bernice Chauly, Festival Director of the George Town Literary Festival.
Quoted from The Star Malaysia:
The George Town Literary Festival (GTLF) has added another feather in its cap by clinching The International Excellence Awards 2018: The Literary Festival Award at The London Book Fair 2018.
Touted as the first South-East Asian literary festival to win the prestigious award, the event was named as the winner during the ceremony on the opening night of The London Book Fair in The Conference Centre, London, on April 10.
GTLF director Bernice Chauly said the award has put George Town firmly on the global literary map.
“We beat two other finalists namely the Joseph Conrad International Literary Festival in Poland and the Druskininkai Poetic Fall in Lithuania,” she said.
Reading what the judges said, Chauly said GTLF “stands out as a vibrant, diverse and brave festival that engages with a wide community of voices, speaking to the world from a complex region”.
She added that this is a huge honour for the work her team had done, and the work that they will continue to do.
Read more at https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/04/24/penang-literary-fest-bags-international-excellence-awards#CxxhIRELxITYMawG.99