Biblioteka Alexandria
Alexandria Library

Alexandria (full name: Biblioteka Alexandria, or “Alexandria Library”) is the first international book review in Serbia. Its focus is on literature and on the history of contemporary ideas. Alexandria was founded in April 1998 by Vreme - a highly admired weekly newspaper in Serbia, and Dusan Velickovic. The magazine is printed in Latin letters, on recycled paper, in a 23 x 32 centimeter format. It is a two color publication with a glossy, full-color cover. Very soon Alexandria will become an independent publication, with Vreme as its founding organization. Concept and Aims Alexandria was conceived as a book review that combines aspects of both serious periodicals and popular magazines. The magazine focuses on domestic and foreign books of many genres, singling out those that may soon take a significant place in contemporary thought. Another distinctive feature of Alexandria is the magazine’s ability to find common themes in seemingly disparate disciplines - politics, history, philosophy, literature and art. In Alexandria, core principles such as democracy, civil society, multicultural studies, and individual freedom of expression are at the heart of the magazine’s editorial vision. The need for a literate magazine of ideas like Alexandria is clearly evident in a region where normal (and responsible) intellectual communication has been among the casualties of the conflicts in the region. In fact, marginalization of creative intellectual life is among the prime causes of the current conflicts. That is why Alexandria - as a magazine - advocates an open flow of creative and significant ideas liberated from ideological and nationalistic strangleholds. Only with such editorial values - put plainly into practice in its pages - can Alexandria advance political and cultural life in Yugoslavia. The magazine’s syndication relationship with Foreign Policy magazine and the Washington Post Book World also contribute to its editorial aims.