The writer Imma Monsó has stated: "From morning to dusk, a question is insistently repeated at the stalls: "What book can I give to someone who doesn't like to read?". A curious and paradoxical question that summarizes all the greatness and misery of this day"
Imma Monsó (Lleida, 1959) is a writer and has worked as a foreign language teacher.
Her career as a narrator began in 1996, with the publication of the short story collection Si és no és, Ribera d'Ebre prize, and the novel No se sap mai (1996). From these two books, she came to be considered one of the most valuable writers of her literary generation. All this was confirmed in 1998 with the novel Com unes vacances, Prudenci Bertrana Prize and Cavall Verd-Blai Bonet Prize for narrative. In 2001 she published the novel Tot un caràcter and later dedicated herself to the genre of short stories and short narratives, which had been her first choice, with Millor que no m'ho expliquis (2003) and Marxem, papà. Aquí no ens hi volen (2004). She has also published an ironic study on the similarities between the Catalan and Japanese people, Hi són però no els veus (2003). She continued her literary production with the novels Un home de paraula (2006), Salambó and Maria Àngels Anglada prize, Una tempesta (2009), La dona veloç (2012), which received the Ramon Llull Prize, and L'aniversari (2016). She was recognized with the National Culture Prize in 2013.
A good part of her work has been translated into Spanish with great success, and she has work translated into French, Hungarian, Italian, and Dutch. Her work is constantly reissued.
Source: Escriptors.cat
XAVIER BRU DE SALA
Xavier Bru de Sala (Barcelona, 1952) is a writer, poet, columnist, and a prominent intellectual in the field of Catalan culture.
A graduate in Catalan Philology, he began his literary career in the field of poetry with the publication in 1973 of La fi del fil, Carles Riba Poetry Prize in 1972. In 1979 he wrote Fràgil, which years later (2003) he reissued with a prologue as a poetics. In addition, he is the author of numerous theatrical adaptations, such as Mar i Cel (1988), by Àngel Guimerà, Cyrano de Bergerac (1987), by Edmond Rostand, or Pygmalion (1997), by Bernard Shaw. In 2007 he published his only novel, Cartes d'uns coneguts a una desconeguda.
As an opinion journalist, he collaborates with various media outlets, such as Avui, La Vanguardia, El Periódico de Catalunya or Catalunya Ràdio. His facet as a polemicist has been accentuated by the publication of essays such as El descrèdit de la literatura (1999) or the two books written by six hands with Julià de Jòdar and Miquel de Palol Fot-li que som catalans (2005) and Fot-li més que encara som catalans (2006).
Apart from his written work, Xavier Bru de Sala plays a significant role in Catalonia's cultural activity. Between 1984 and 1987, he was literary director of Edicions Proa, and between 1988 and 1991, general director of Cultural Promotion of the Generalitat de Catalunya. In 2009, he served as President of the first Consell Nacional de la Cultura i de les Arts (CoNCA) for a few months.
VALENTÍ PUIG
Valentí Puig (Mallorca, 1949) is a writer and press columnist, both in Catalan and Spanish. He has recently been awarded the National Culture Prize and in recent months has published, as novelties, the novel El bar de l'AVE; the fifth installment of his diaries, La bellesa del temps; the poems of Oratges de la memòria; and the rescue of the Diccionari Pla de Literatura, "a book that is still a great mine".
He studied Philosophy and Literature at the University of Barcelona. He has published novels, essays, poems, up to thirty books. He has won awards such as the Ramon Llull, the Josep Pla, the Critics' Prize and the Sant Joan. He directs the quarterly magazine of ideas and culture F.
His work has been selected to be part of the anthologies The origins of desire, Después de la modernidad, Pólwysep w wierszach, Paraula encesa and Las dos hermanas.
He is the author of several essays on international politics, moderatism, Josep Pla, in defense of the imperfect world, the return to the Catholic faith, the future of the monarchy or the moral effects of the 2008 crisis.
RAFAEL VALLBONA
Rafael Vallbona (Barcelona 1960). Writer and journalist. Author of more than fifty books of all kinds including novels, non-fiction, poetry collections and travel books; some of which have been translated, and others have been awarded, for example, with the Amat Piniella prize for La comuna de Puigcerdà (2001) and the Néstor Luján historical novel prize for Forasters (2007); the Ernest Udina journalism prize for Pirineus en venda (2005); the Columna jove for Recanvis Luna (1997) and the Ramon Muntaner prize for youth novel for La balada de JK (2001); the Ferran Canyameres prize for crime novel for Tros (20016), the Cadaqués a Rosa Leveroni or the Jocs Florals de Barcelona for poetry, both for the poetry collection Al Raval (1999); and the Sant Joan novel prize for La casa de la frontera (2017).
A regular contributor to press, radio and television, he is also a professor at the Blanquerna Faculty of Communication.
ISABEL-CLARA SIMÓ
Isabel-Clara Simó (Alcoi, April 4, 1943) is a writer and journalist. With a degree in philosophy from the University of Valencia, she taught in Bunyol, Figueres and Barcelona, where she studied journalism. Later she was a professor at the Faculty of Translation and Interpretation of the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and obtained a doctorate in Catalan philology. She is a regular contributor to the Catalan press and has collaborated in some collective volumes, such as Dona i societat a la Catalunya actual (1978).
Her work, both literary and journalistic, is strongly marked by a commitment to advocacy, especially in the fight for women's rights, as well as against social injustices and in defense of Catalan and Catalan culture. Among the fifty titles she has published, one can mention the narratives (És quan miro que hi veig clar, 1979, Víctor Català prize, Alcoi-Nova York, 1987, Spiritual, 1993, Serra d'Or Critics' Prize, Dones, 1997; Estimats homes (Una caricatura), 2001; Angelets, 2004; Homes, 2009; La vida sense ell, 2013; Tota a questa gent, 2014) and the novels: Júlia (1983), Ídols (1985), T'estimo Marta (1986), Els ulls de Clídice (1990), La Nati (1991), La salvatge (1993), Sant Jordi prize, El Mossèn (1994), La innocent (1995), València de Literatura prize, El professor de música, Crítica dels Escriptors Valencians de narrativa prize (1999); El gust amarg de la cervesa (1999), T'imagines la vida sense ell? (2000), Rita! L'home que ensumava dones (2001), Andròmina prize, L'home que volava en el trapezi (2002), Adéu-suau (2006), El caníbal (2007), El meu germà Pol (2008), Amor meva (2010, Joanot Martorell prize), Un tros de cel (2012), Els invisibles (2013), L'amant de Picasso(2015) and Jonàs (2016).
She is also the author of essay books (En legítima defensa, 2003, Crítica dels Escriptors Valencians prize; Adéu Boadella , 2008), theater (… I Nora obrí la porta, 1990; Còmplices, 2004, La visita, awarded in 2011 with the Ciutat d'Alcoi Theater prize and published in 2012) and the biographical Els racons de la memòria (2009).
She has been awarded the Cross of Sant Jordi (1999), the prize of the Association of Periodical Publications in Catalan (2002), the Trajectory Prize of the Catalan Book Week (2009), the Pompeu Fabra prize (2009), the Gold Medal of Alcoi (2013), a city that also granted her the title of favorite daughter, and the Jaume Fuster prize from the AELC for her career (2013). In 2017, she received the Honor Award for Catalan Letters.
JULIÀ DE JÒDAR
Julià de Jòdar (Badalona, 1942) is a writer. He is the author of the trilogy L'atzar i les ombres (Chance and Shadows), a panorama of the Catalan proletariat from the 1950s to the transition, consisting of L'àngel de la segona mort (1997) –Ciutat de Barcelona and Cavall Verd-Blai Bonet awards–, El trànsit de les fades (2001) –Critic's Award– and El metall impur (2006) –Sant Jordi and Crítica Serra d'Or awards–. He has also written the novels L'home que va estimar Natàlia Vidal (2003) –Prudenci Bertrana Award-, Noi, ¿has vist la mare amagada entre les ombres? (2008), La pastoral catalana (2010) –Carlemany and Crítica Serra d'Or awards– and El desertor en el camp de batalla (2013). In recent months he has published Fot-li al Procés (2017) and Els vulnerables (2018). He has published the collection of narrative Zapata als Encants (1999) and has translated novels by Doctorow, Somerset Maugham and Julien Gracq into Catalan and Spanish. Together with Enric Juliana, he wrote the play Radiacions (2011), which was adapted for television. He regularly collaborates with various print media. He is co-author of the political satire writings Fot-li, que som catalans! (2005) and Fot-li més que encara som catalans (2006), and of the work Cop de CUP. Viatge a l'ànima i a les arrels de les candidatures d'Unitat Popular (2012).
GEMMA LIENAS
Gemma Lienas (Barcelona, 1951) has a degree in Philosophy and Letters from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, is a writer, lecturer and collaborator for various media outlets. She has more than 90 published titles (www.gemmalienas.com), has received several national awards, such as the Ramon Llull de les Lletres Catalanes and the Andròmina, and international awards, such as the IBBY honorable mention.
Her work has been translated into several languages. In 2010, for her role in Catalan literature of the late 20th and early 21st centuries and for her feminist struggle, she received the Francesc Macià Medal for Work from the Generalitat de Catalunya. In the past, and for fifteen years, she was a postgraduate professor at the Universitat de Barcelona and, in parallel, director of editions at various publishing houses. She was also a secondary school and special education teacher for 11 years.
RAFEL NADAL
Rafel Nadal i Farreras (Girona, 1954) is a Catalan journalist and writer. He currently writes for La Vanguardia and regularly collaborates with RAC1, TV3, and 8TV. He was the director of El Periódico de Catalunya from May 2006 to February 2010, a period during which the newspaper received many awards.
Previously, he worked for the country's main newspapers and held various positions of responsibility in publishing companies and communication groups. In his role as a writer, he stood out in 2011 with Els Mandarins, and won the Premi Josep Pla de narrativa in 2012, and the Premi Amat-Piniella in 2013, with the novel Quan érem feliços (2012).
In October 2013, he published his novel Quan en dèiem xampany, which, like the previous one, deals with a family saga straddling Catalonia and French Champagne. In 2015, he published La maledicció dels Palmisano. In 2017, he published his latest novel to date, La senyora Stendhal.
The novelist Care Santos has stated: "Sant Jordi is the best day of the year. The day when books are for everyone what they mean to me: something important that makes life better."
Care Santos is a Catalan writer who writes in both Spanish and Catalan. She was born in Mataró (Barcelona) in 1970. She started writing at the age of 8, at 14 she won her first literary competition, and at 25 she published her first book, a collection of short stories. Since then, she has published ten novels, six short story collections, two poetry books (she doesn't plan to repeat) and a large number of novels for young adults and children. Her work has been translated into 22 languages, including English, German, Italian, French, Romanian, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Korean, Persian, and Chinese. Among her notable titles are La muerte de Venus (finalist for the Premio Primavera de Novela 2007), Habitaciones cerradas (Planeta, 2011), which was adapted into a television mini-series and premiered on TVE in 2014; Deseo de chocolate (Premio Ramon Llull 2014) and Diamante azul (Destino, 2015). Currently, she teaches literary workshops, works as a literary critic, and dedicates all the time she can to caring for her three children who, in her own words, are "her best works."
The novelist Xavier Bosch stated that "Sant Jordi is the best spot in Catalonia. Not even the most acclaimed publicist would have come up with a more effective advertisement".
Xavier Bosch was born in Barcelona in 1967. Author of the novels Nosaltres dos (2017), Algú com tu (2016), Eufòria (2016), Se sabrà tot (Sant Jordi Award 2009 and best-selling book of 2010) and Homes d'honor (2012). Previously, he had published the short story collections Jo, el simolses (1992) and Vicis domèstics (1998), and the short novel La màgia dels reis (1994). A journalist with a long career, he has created successful audiovisual formats such as Alguna Pregunta Més, El món a RAC 1 or El gran dictat. He has been head of programs at RAC1, director of Avui, of the documentary La fleur and of Àgora at TV3. He is currently a columnist and a member of the editorial board of Ara.