International Children’s Book Day Marked Today, Sofia Launches 15th “March of the Books” Campaign

International Children's Book Day is celebrated every year on 2 April. In Sofia, the 15th edition of the national campaign “March of the Books” will be officially launched. The event will take place at the Municipal Cultural Institute, Iskar House of Culture, starting at 11:00, organisers from the Bulgarian Book Association have announced.

According to them, the campaign aims to encourage reading among children and young people and to establish the book as a core value in contemporary society. During the event, awards will be presented to the most active readers, the most inquisitive children, as well as the “Reader of the Year 2025”. A special certificate will also be awarded for contribution to promoting reading among children, the Association added.

Yordanka Furnadzhieva, member of the Management Board of the Bulgarian Book Association: “First of all, I would like to wish a happy holiday to all young and grown-up readers. Yes, the book undoubtedly continues to be preserved as a value. I will allow myself to quote the great contemporary thinker Umberto Eco, who says that in the rapidly developing technological world we are, in fact, returning to the Gutenberg universe, where reading becomes essential and necessary. Why is that? Because in this developing world, a much higher level of literacy is required. And how is this literacy achieved? Precisely through books and reading. I observe that more and more parents are beginning to instil the book as a value within the family, alongside all other values. Of course, this is also reflected in the market, where an increasing number of publications by both Bulgarian and foreign authors are being released in Bulgarian. These are editions that cultivate various values, including illustrated books that develop taste from an early age.”

Alexander Traykov, Deputy Minister of Culture: “The ‘March of the Books’ is a very important initiative, now being held for the 15th consecutive year. For us, children matter, reading matters, education matters, and consequently culture matters, as the Ministry of Culture. We fully support this initiative across the entire country. For this reason, I believe it is one of the most important events of 2026. People from all professions will read to children – from athletes to politicians. The full spectrum of public figures will demonstrate that children and children’s books are extremely important.”