Actualities

Publishing house Pectus, State Scientific Library in Košice and "Dukla" Library in Svidník realized 3rd year of Litteriada on 6th to 8th November 2012. Individual literary cafes enabled to look into the backstage of contemporary Slovak, Polish and Estonian literature. The festival presented e.g. the latest works from Janka Halušková and Robert Kačeňák and it was realized also thanks to the support of the Ministry of Culture. In her book Who is living with Barborka, Halušková created a magic world of creatures with familiar and actual life difficulties, world in which the ethics still applies. In the latest book for adults Love in the Time of Plague, Kačeňák focuses on real socialism.

Pavol Hudák, our colleague and friend, passed away on Tuesday, January 18th. He left us suddenly, unexpectedly and forever. Pavol Hudák was a poet who didn’t forget that beauty lies in simplicity. Although he was unnoticed by the official literary circles, for many of us he will remain the most original and the most remarkable phenomenon of Slovak poetry at the turn of the centuries. As one of the few, he was creating in such a way as he lived. It has never been possible to separate his literary production from everything he was experiencing, from the way by which he evaluated the world. He was a man who didn’t lack mainly humanity. Heart of this poet and indescribable charm in his verses are one and the same even though poetry doesn’t have to lose a feature of universality. Therefore, Hudák’s poems will be always speaking to new generations.

Publishing house Pectus and Conservatory in Košice realized a second year of Litteriada on 21st to 24th September 2010 and it took place in Košice Culturepark. This event highly contributed to a discussion with public about the contemporary situation of literature in five countries. International literary festival took place thanks to the support of Ministry of Culture and private sponsors. Without their help, the event wouldn’t have had the appropriate quality.
Four evenings were carried out in spirit of Lithuanian, Polish, Austrian, German as well as Slovak literary café. The authorial discussion not only about own production was attended by the most important writers from individual countries.

Publishing house Pectus in cooperation with Public library of Ján Bocatius in Košice organized for the literature lovers the authorial discussion with Ľudovít Petraško and Peter Karpinský. On April 29th 2010 at 5.00 p.m. in the Photo Gallery Nova in Košice both authors presented their latest works to public – Petraško presented the novel Bygone Times and Karpinský, one of the finalists for the prize Anasoft Litera, his short story book Antisumption.

From 21th to 24th May 2009 held the 54th International Book Fair in Warsaw. Among the many foreign publishing, the Publishing Pectus from Košice participated at this event as well. Pectus was exhibiting an original and literature in translation of book production within the last 2 years. Visitors were informed about the new website of Pectus, the Art Association and Publishing. Slovak Institut in Warsaw and Association of Slovaks in Poland were presenting themselves in the common Slovak booth with Pectus together.

The firt edition of the annual international literary festival called Litteriada was strongly supported by the media. Thanks to this media cooperation, the event was presented by Slovak Television, and several radio spots were broadcast on the Devín and Regina radio stations. The Daily Korzár newspaper regularly published new information. The participating authors themselves gave a large number of interviews. The Festival also brought responses from abroad, particularly in Poland, where both literary and non-literary magazines produced articles referring to the cordial welcome for the Polish authors and the favour shown by Slovak readers towards Polish literature.

The first edition of the annual Litteriada Festival may be said to have fulfilled the expectations of its Slovak and foreign participants. Public dialogue took place, the writers had the chance to get to know each other and to discuss the issues that most concern them, issues which certainly do not concern Slovak writers exclusively. The Pectus Publishing House successfully arranged the publication of two Slovak and three foreign book titles in time for them to be presented at the Festival.