Zagreb, 5 November 2025 (MIA) — Through Nov. 7, the Macedonian Cultural and Information Center in Zagreb will host the first Contemporary Macedonian Literature Festival, aimed at promoting Macedonian literature and deepening Macedonian-Croatian cultural ties.

"Through exhibitions, promotions, panels and literary portraits, the festival will offer a platform for dialogue and cultural exchange between the Macedonian and Croatian literary scenes," organizers said.

Panelists will discuss Macedonian-Croatian cultural ties through the prism of literary translation.

The festival's events include book releases of works by Macedonian authors such as Blazhe Minevski and Ranko Mladenovski translated into Croatian as well as a showcase of Croatian authors translated into Macedonian.

Book launches will be held for Macedonian-Croatian author Borjana Prošev-Oliver's book of short stories "Have I Told You?" (»Jesam li vam pričala?“« / „Ви раскажував ли?“) and for a book by Macedonian and Croatian language scholar Goran Kalogjera on Kocho Racin (1908–1943), the founder of Macedonian contemporary poetry.

There will be another event dedicated to Racin's seminal "White Dawns" („Бели мугри“), his collection of 12 socialist poems about the struggles of the working class. First published in Samobor, Croatia, in 1939, the poetry book became a cornerstone of contemporary Macedonian literature.

The Contemporary Macedonian Literature Festival in Zagreb will end with a coversation with Croatian children's writers Sanja Pilić and Silvija Šesto to mark the release of their books "All the Best About Mums" and "Vanda" in Macedonian translation.

The festival is organized by the Macedonian Cultural and Information Center in Zagreb in partnership with the publishing house Makedonika Litera, with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. mr/