Budapest book fest honours Israel

Budapest's annual book fair will welcome celebrated Israeli writer Amos Oz among its guests at the Hungarian capital's four-day event that kicked off Thursday.

Israel, this year's guest of honour, will hold book presentations, discussions, concerts and photo expositions, whilst Oz presents his new novel "Rhyming Life and Death", newly published in Hungarian.

Budapest's city mayor will also award Oz the Budapest Grand Prize.

A total of 24 countries will attend the festival where some 50,000 volumes are on offer. Newcomers include Saudi Arabia, the first Arab country to participate, as well as Brazil, Vietnam and Austria.

Returning exhibitors to the 17th edition of the international fair include China, Germany, Greece, Japan, Poland, Romania, Russia and Spain.

The festival, which runs until Sunday at Budapest's Millenaris cultural centre, is a major event for the Hungarian book trade.