MAKHACHKALA, September 30 – RIA "Dagestan". Organizers of the XIII North Caucasian Book Festival "Tarki-Tau – 2026" held a press conference to unveil details of the upcoming event, scheduled to run on October 2 - 4. For the first time, the event will span across two cities: Makhachkala and Buynaksk.
Backed by the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives as part of the "Reading Russia" project, this year's event will feature exhibition booths from 47 publishers and booksellers hailing from Dagestan, other Russian regions and South Ossetia.
As to festival founder and director Marat Gadzhiev, bringing top-tier Russian authors to the event is a tradition upheld year after year. The 2026 program features Islam Khanipaev, Yuri Polyakov, Marina Moskvina, Maxim Amelin and Georgy Arustamyan. Visitors will also get a first look at new books about notable local figures, including a book honoring the journalist Alik Abdulgamidov and "The Creator" a biography of the renowned statesman Gamzat Gamzatov.
Gadzhiev highlighted that "Tarki-Tau" has become a must-attend event for Russia's leading writers, many of whom actively request invitations to the republic for the chance to interact face-to-face with their audience.
This year's program places the preservation and promotion of indigenous languages among its foremost objectives. Khadizhat Kurakhova, head of the "Epokha" publishing house, highlighted a significant surge in demand for native language textbooks, which would be widely showcased at the upcoming exhibition. A graphic novel adaptation of Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, translated in indigenous languages of Dagestan, will become one of the event's standout premieres. According to Deputy Minister of Digital Development, Information and Mass Media Karina Kazieva, using the comic book format is a deliberate educational strategy designed to attract young readers to classical literature and encourage them to learn their native languages.
Pushkin Street in Makhachkala and the Museum of History and Local History in Buynaksk will serve as the main venues for the festival. The program features daily lectures, interactive workshops, literary quizzes and the "Lights of Tarki-Tau" children's cultural program.
Traditionally, the festival will finish with the "Best Book 'Tarki-Tau – 2026'" awarding ceeminy, honoring excellence in 12 professional categories. The event is organized by the "Institute for the Development of New Media", "Dagmedia", the "Epokha" publishing house and the regional branch of the Russian Book Foundation, with support from the regional Ministry of Digital Development, Information and Press.