Association

Brazilian Book Chamber (CBL) is a non-profit association, representing publishers, booksellers, distributors, and other professionals in the sector. For 78 years it has been working on several fronts, always with the aim of promoting access to books and the democratization of reading throughout the country, besides promoting Brazilian literature in the international market. Since March 2020, CBL is the National Agency of the ISBN and, in the same period, it has launched a digital platform, which brings together its services in an integrated and dynamic way. Another powerful performance of the entity is linked to a relations agenda with the most diverse public and governmental spheres to discuss important guidelines and policies for the sector. All its actions are elaborated with a strategic and sensitive vision of those who believe in the transforming power of books for society.

In Brazil, the entity has created and still maintains some of the most important literary events in the country, such as the São Paulo International Book Fair, in addition to the largest and most traditional awards in the Brazilian books sector, the Jabuti Award. Annually, CBL publishes studies that reveal overviews of the book market in the country, such as the Production and Sales Surveys of the Brazilian Publishing Sector and its historical series, in addition to the Digital Content of the Brazilian Publishing Sector.

The institution propagates Brazilian literature abroad through the Brazilian Publishers Project, a partnership with Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil). Thanks to the program, Brazilian publishers receive support to participate in international book fairs, among other actions.

Mission

Strengthen all links in the book production chain and promote the democratization of access to books and reading.

Our story

The Brazilian Book Chamber was officially created on September 20, 1946, in an assembly held at the Bookstore O Pensamento, located in the former Largo de São Paulo, in the center of the capital. Its history refers to the cultural excitement of São Paulo in the 40s, when a group of publishers and booksellers began to meet to discuss the problems of the sector and seek ways of joint and organized action. “Livro, presente de amigo” (Book, a friend's gift) was the first advertising campaign that, still in 1946, began the outreach work of books. See some of the key milestones in CBL's trajectory: