- The initiative, organized for the sixth consecutive year by the General Directorate of Books, Comics and Reading, is aimed at boosting the activity of independent bookshops and supporting literary creation in all languages of Spain
- Isaac Rosa, Tamara Andrés, Ana María Basanta or Víctor Vázquez are some of the writers who participate in the meetings in the Community of Valencia, which start in June
Between June and October, five independent bookstores in Madrid will host meetings between authors in the sixth edition of the ‘Afindades Electives’ program. Literary encounters in bookshops’.
The initiative, launched in 2020 by the Ministry of Culture through the General Directorate of Books, Comics and Reading, consists of the dialogue between two creators, selected by the library that organizes the activity, and who write in different languages of Spain. In the conversations it is proposed to each author to investigate the work and the work of the other, looking for similarities, connections or divergent paths.
The meetings scheduled in the Community of Madrid will take place from June 25 to October 10 in the following independent bookstores:
- Infamous types, with Isaac Rosa (Spanish) and Gemma Ruiz Palà (Catalan), on June 25
- Capitel, with Francisco José Martínez (Spanish) and Tamara Andrés (Galician), on June 28
- La lumbre, with María Sánchez (Spanish) and Ismael Ramos (Galician), on September 6
- Lé Bookstore, with Ana María Basanta (Catalan) and Antonio Fornés (Spanish), on October 2
- Serendipias, with Emma del Pilar Pedreira (Galician) and Víctor Vázquez (Spanish), on October 10
These activities are freely accessible and free for the interested public.
About ‘Elective affinities’
The main objectives of this program are to promote the activity in independent libraries and to value the linguistic plurality of our country, promoting dialogue and contributing to the dissemination of literature from different territories.
A total of 130 authors, 65 women and 65 men, will participate in this edition, with the aim of promoting parity in the sector. Some names that will be part of the program this year are Mario Obrero, Clara Usón, Xesús Fraga, Katixa Agirre, Ismael Ramos and Luz Pichel.
Thus, a diverse program has been formed in which authors will meet with works in Spanish, Galician, Catalan, Basque, Asturian, Valencian and Aragonese, and representatives of various literary genres: narrative, poetry, essay and illustration.
As for the geographical distribution, in addition to the five meetings in the Community of Madrid, there will be eighteen in Galicia, nine in the Valencian Community, seven in Andalusia, seven in Asturias, six in Castilla y León, four in Catalonia, three in the Basque Country, three in Aragón, and one in the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Balearic Islands and Region of Murcia, respectively.