The National Palace of Culture (Natsionalen dvorets na kulturata), located in Sofia, the largest, multifunctional conference and exhibition centre in south-eastern Europe, has hosted the book launch of ‘Modern Azerbaijan Literature’, published by "Български писател" publishing house. This book in Bulgarian is a project that the Translation Centre under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan (AzTC) has been implementing to promote Azerbaijani Literature. The event was attended by famous Bulgarian writers and poets, critics, including Nobel Prize nominee in Literature, writer Anton Donchev, director of the Azerbaijani Language and Cultural Center functioning at the University of Sofia "St. Kliment Ohridski" Sofiya Shıgayeva-Mitreska and chief of the Consular Section at the Azerbaijani Embassy in Sofia Kanan Mammadov.

Bulgarian poet, chairman of the Union of Bulgarian Writers Boyan Angelov in his opening remarks said it was the first-ever edition to reach a large audience. “Every piece included in this book is of a high artistic quality. After reading this book that includes literary treasurers of modern Azerbaijan Literature, Bulgarian readers will have a clear understanding of the rich spiritual world of the Azerbaijani people. Azerbaijan’s literature will arouse great interest in our country through this project, which is a unique event in the history of literature. We plan further cooperation with AzTC in this noble endeavor,” he said. Angelov also expressed gratitude, on behalf of the Union of Bulgarian Writers, for the efforts undertaken by AzTC Director Afag Masud in building such a literary and cultural bridge between the peoples of Bulgaria and Azerbaijan.

AzTC Director Afag Masud, in turn, focused on the past and present evolution of Azerbaijan Literature. She went on saying how AzTC was presented worldwide through international cooperation launched in recent years.  

Yonka Ilieva, an actress of the Sofia National Theatre, took the floor, reading some poems included in the edition by Ali Karim, Isa Ismayılzade, Vaqif Samadoglu, Musa Yagub, Ramiz Rovshan, Zakir Fakhri, Rustem Behrudi, Agshin Yenisey, Leyla Aliyeva and Gismet.

Later on, the translators for the book - Nadya Popova, Ivan Yesensky, Dmitri Khristov and Iva Nikolova - spoke about the importance of the book and read some of the poems they had translated.

“Sofia will host five more launches of the book, and hard copies of the edition will be delivered to libraries in the US and Europe as well as to be posted electronically,” Angelov said in the final part of the event.

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