Belgrade  - For the Jovanovic family, the Belgrade Book Fair, which opens Monday, is an annual family gathering - "food for the soul" they call it.

"The first time I went to the fair I was a student. I can still remember the smell of the new books and the atmosphere and the thrill of being surrounded with so many book lovers," Srecko Jovanovic, a retired pilot from Belgrade told the German Press Agency dpa.

This if the fair's 54th year. It is the biggest in the Balkans and the one with the longest tradition.

Along with his wife, Olga, and daughter, Milica, Jovanovic has rarely missed the fair, even in times when the region's turbulent politics has left it a shadow of itself.

The 1990s break up of Yugoslavia, and the subsequent wars and sanctions, left Belgrade deprived of new releases. Nonetheless, many still managed to find comfort in reprinted classics, old editions, occasional bestseller or bootlegged books from neighboring Croatia.

"During the 1990s and all that despair, I would almost cry with happiness when I saw those people still buying or publishing the books and reading and actually keeping in touch with the world production. It was a window to the world for us," Olga Jovanovic said.

With the fall of strongman Slobodan Milosevic in 2000 and the arrival of democratic government, the fair began opening up to the world, with publishers from all over returning and presenting their editions, helping local publishers keeping up with the global trends.

But the global economic crisis hit Serbian publishers hard this past year. An average monthly salary in Serbia is around 400 dollars, while an average paperback book costs around 10 dollars, making it a luxury good for many.

Moreover, recent studies showed that the majority of schoolchildren do not read at all and that many young people who grew up during the 1990s have never read a book in their lives.

Still, the fair has registered record attendance levels in the past few years, with tens of thousands of visitors.

"Many of us are still reading, and for those who do not live in Belgrade, its easier to get them all in one place than to search for them in bookstores," Olga Jovanovic, a retired school teacher, said.

This year, organizers say, will be the best yet, with a changed concept of the fair, more space and better organization. This year's slogan is "Sea of books." Some 800 publishers will attend, with Greece as this year's guest of honor.

As usual, the fair will be at Belgrade Fair - a large exhibition complex of several building connected by passages.

During the week-long event, Belgrade will exhibit books from Sweden, Japan, Canada, China, Russia, Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Spain, Israel, Iran, Brazil and the Balkans region.

British writers Tony Parsons, whose books are bestsellers in Serbia, and Louis de Bernieres will be among the guests this year.

Jovanovic's daughter Milica, an engineer, looks forward to it.

"Its like coming home. The fair is our only family gathering during the year. We come early in the morning, visit every single booth, talk with friends and acquaintances, buy the books and finish our day with a nice diner and a chat on books," she said.

"I'm proud as a peacock when I see my daughter with her friends at the fair. It is true that kids today do not read, but still there are so many young people at the fair every year which gives me hope that the fair will survive," Srecko Jovanovic said. (dpa)