The publishing arm of the public broadcaster RTV Slovenija has released a German audiobook of poems by Slovenian national bard France Prešeren in the run-up to Slovenia's being featured as the guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair in October. The audiobook is narrated by German actor Urs Remond.

The release of the audiobook France Prešeren: Poesien coincides with an exhibition dedicated to the poet and his work in the German Romanticism Museum in Frankfurt, one of the three exhibitions showcasing Slovenian culture and history that are opening in Frankfurt ahead of the book fair.

On show from 14 September to 25 November, the first exhibition features a selection of manuscripts by Prešeren (1800-1849) and Luiza Pesjak (1828-1898), the first woman to write a novel in Slovenian.

The visitors will be able to use a QR code to listen to four poems by Prešeren, as interpreted in the audiobook. With the exhibition's opening the edition will also become available on international audiobook sites.

Prešeren, a poet who was a classicist in expression and a romantic in spirit, is best known for his poem A Toast (Zdravljica), the 7th stanza of which is now the Slovenian national anthem.

The exhibition was created in cooperation with SKICA Berlin, the German Romanticism Museum and the Slovenian National and University Library.

The audiobook, which was co-financed by the Culture Ministry, will also be promoted at the Frankfurt Book Fair, running from 18 to 22 October.

It features a new translation of Prešeren's selected poems by Boštjan Dvorak and has been made in cooperation with Radio Slovenija's cultural programme ARS to mark its 60th anniversary.

Remond, who narrated the poems, is known for his participation in international productions, including in projects with ZKP RTV Slovenija.

Two other exhibitions opening in Frankfurt will focus on writer and globetrotter Alma Karlin (1889-1950) and on the history of telecommunications in Slovenia.

From 15 September to 23 November, the Haus am Dom - Katholische Akademie Rabanus Maurus will host an exhibition dubbed Alma Maksimiljana Karlin - the Writer.

The title borrows from the original text on Karlin's visiting card, which reflects Karlin's main life goal - writing. Karlin was a polyglot, theosophist and cosmopolitan.

The central part of the exhibition features 36 first editions of Karlin's books from her early period - travelogues from the 1930s, her most famous works, along with selected accompanying material.

The exhibition Hello! Where Are You? Stories from Slovenia and Germany will open in the Museum of Communication on 17 September, delving into the history of mobile telecommunications in Slovenia and Germany. The exhibition will run until 17 March 2024.