Already on his first day as the new Book Fair CEO, Oskar Ekström presents the content for the 2025 fair, and despite seven years as program manager, the new responsibility is somewhat overwhelming.
I've worked for a long time at the Book Fair, so it feels fairly safe to take on this role, he says.
He does so at a time when the world is on fire – and Ekström emphasizes that the turbulent times are reflected in the program, featuring seminars on topics ranging from the climate to the Middle East. The Book Fair also sets a record for international guests this year, with 159 people from 33 countries – including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and playwrights Roland Schimmelpfennig and Tony Kushner.
One of this year's major themes is love and lust.
It's one of the biggest areas in all our lives, and of course, in all fiction too. So, it's a huge and exciting theme to explore, says Oskar Ekström.
Romance and Booktok
This year, the romance genre will take center stage for the first time. Booktok, which is popular among young people, is also featured with the help of several TikTok profiles interviewing authors – for example, Fredrik Backman. Additionally, romance queens Julia Quinn and Sarah MacLean will attend.
They are also free speech activists fighting against the banned books trend, which often affects romance, says Oskar Ekström.
He sees the fair as a project in constant change, and when he puts his own stamp on it going forward, it's essential for him to reach young readers.
Strengthened drama
This year, drama will also have its own room – where several plays and readings will be performed – and its own stage on the exhibition floor.
Drama is literature and belongs at the Book Fair. It's awesome that we can give the audience new formats, says Oskar Ekström, who emphasizes that theaters across the Nordic and Baltic regions have worked together.
It will be a manifestation for drama, but also a Nordic-Baltic platform that will strengthen drama in our countries.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie will receive the fair's literary prize, the Mermaid. Other authors visiting the fair include Dan Brown, Jonathan Ames, Julia Quinn, Judith Hermann, Chigozie Obioma, and Marie Ndiaye.
YouTuber and influencer Jack Edwards, who has the world's largest Booktok account, drew a larger audience than Joyce Carol Oates last year. This year, they will lead several conversations – and have invited both book influencers and authors, including Naoise Dolan and Tia Williams.
In a special theater room, 16 acts will be performed, including excerpts from Sara Stridsberg's new play "Svindel", Athena Farrokzhad's "Antigone's Legacy", and the Royal Dramatic Theatre's "Hamlet". Roland Schimmelpfennig and Tony Kushner will attend as guests.
Several seminars will focus on the symbiosis between text and music, featuring artists such as Björn Ulvaeus, Annika Norlin, and Siw Malmkvist.
The large garden is a new area for niche literature, with smaller publishers releasing poetry, translations, and literary experiments.
