This year Jewish Book Community Festival celebrated its anniversary in the north Kazakhstan. Already five years running OFEK has been gladdening Petropavlovsk and nearby populated areas with amazing exhibitions and art evenings. This year festival started from the library named after Sabit Mukanov. Hesed "Efraim" volunteers took an active part in holiday organization.

   Library conference hall was decorated with national Israeli symbols. Book stands with books from the fund of Jewish republican library in Petropavlosk were put along the walls. Guest could see religious, children's literature and fiction. Special interest from the side of Petropavlovsk citizens was awoken by books in Jewish studies.

  Exhibition of children's works, prepared by art studio of city Jewish community center, were presented in the course of meeting. Namely, at Mukanov library people could get acquainted to the works, made with hands and with a help of fantasy of Jewish young generation of Petropavlovsk.

   A meeting with traditional Jewish cooking gave many pleasant minutes both to cooks and tasters. Festival guests surrounded the table of Women's club members.

   Within the framework of OFEK-2004 were held a number of enthralling author's lectures such as: "Famous Jews in Russian culture" by Valeriy Lubushin, a professor of North Kazakhstan State University; "A Divine in everything…" by Lidya Girko about works of Isaac Levitan and "History of Hazar kaganat" by Mark Vitkin.

   All OFEK guests were greeted by "Shalom" vocal group, "Hatihot" children's art studio, singer Ivan Usatov, dance group and violinist ensemble!

   A first night of theatrical play "Iosif, observing Shabbat", staged by members of youth club became a real surprise for OFEK guests. Both artists and guests got a great pleasure for the play.

   But that wasn't the end of the Jewish Book Community Festival. This week artist group and Hesed members are going to a distant region - Timiryazevo village. Jewish Book trip around Kazakhstan is to be continued.

Svetlana Makarovskaya
Galina Korobkina