News from the Herd - July '26
- Zebralution represented Germany at FILGUA
- High water in Berlin – the herd is gathering in their home offices
- Zebras at the Future Parliament
- BookTok goes Open Air – Melissa van der Kuip on the IGNITE!Publishing podcast
- Red alert in the children’s bedroom? – Pia Löber-Wille and Thomas Rathnow on the IGNITE!Publishing podcast
Zebralution represented Germany at FILGUA
From 7 to 19 July, the Feria Internacional del Libro en Guatemala (FILGUA) took place in Guatemala City, with Germany as the guest of honour. Zebralution was part of the German delegation and shared a stand organised by the Frankfurt Book Fair. Carlos Rojas, our Head of Spanish and English Content, was there and spoke on the topic of “El audiolibro en Latinoamérica en el contexto internacional” – audiobooks in Latin America in an international context. The Spanish-language audiobook market is developing rapidly, and Carlos provided interested publishers with valuable insights into the production and distribution of audiobooks, both locally and globally.
High water in Berlin – the herd is gathering in their home offices
At the start of July, the Berlin Zebras woke up to the news that there had been water damage in the office. Fortunately, this didn’t have any serious consequences for our work, apart from the fact that we had to switch to working from home until further notice. But as zebras are herd animals, colleagues quickly came forward – at least for our traditional ‘office Tuesdays’ – to make their homes available for cosy co-working sessions and our traditional weekly breakfasts. The Zebra spirit lives on!
Zebras at the Future Parliament
Every July, the German Publishers and Booksellers Association organises a two-day ‘Future Parliament’, where young professionals in the book and media industry come together to network, attend workshops and discuss specialist topics. This year, our Zebras Bianca Münch, Kim Zimmermann and Michaela Weiß attended the event at the Mediencampus Frankfurt and were delighted with the excellent organisation, inspiring workshops, plenty of new networking opportunities and the successful reading by Franziska Gänsler, whose latest novel Orca explores the fears about the future, inner conflicts and social tensions within Gen Z – a fitting and fitting conclusion!
BookTok goes Open Air – Melissa van der Kuip on the IGNITE!Publishing podcast
In the 24th episode, Daniel Lenz and Albrecht Mangler spoke to organiser Melissa van der Kuip about the BookBash Festival, which is set to take place for the first time this year. In a woodland setting near Berlin, the aim is to bring the community spirit of #BookTok and #Bookstagram into the real world – with readings, book signings, fancy dress competitions and many other events and activities. Are festivals a possible future for the book industry? And how can publishers get involved? All this and more in this episode.
Red alert in the children’s bedroom? – Pia Löber-Wille and Thomas Rathnow on the IGNITE!Publishing podcast
In the latest, 24th episode of the IGNITE!Publishing podcast, Daniel Lenz and Albrecht Mangler discuss with Pia Löber-Wille from the Federal Association for the Promotion of Reading and Thomas Rathnow from the Stiftung Lesen (former CEO of Penguin Random House in Germany) about the declining enthusiasm for and ability to read among children and young people, the impact on the book market, and what not only the publishing industry but, above all, we as a society can do to slow down this trend.
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