In Miami, the celebration will take place on Wednesday, May 1 at the Koubek Center, in a meeting convened by the Miami International Book Fair. What is going to happen is related by Mariela Gal, coordinator of the Spanish program of the Miami Book Fair: “it will be an excellent opportunity for the public to have close contact with the cultural managers of Miami, while we commemorate a fundamental date for the Spanish-speaking community.”
The program will bring together about fifteen local authors, who come representing various organizations and publishing houses. These writers will read texts of their authorship. Among the guests are Gastón Virkel for Suburbano Ediciones, Ximena Gómez for Katakana, Leonardo Padrón for Alliteration/Lugar Común, Legna Rodríguez Iglesias for the Cuatrogatos Foundation, narrator Santiago Rodríguez for Insularis Magazine and La Otra Esquina de las Palabras, and Willema Wong representing to Viernes de Tertulia and Editorial El Ateje.
Mariela Gal remembers previous meetings for the International Book Day. “We dedicate one of the Tómate a Drink y Escribe Mejor evenings to the celebration of Book Day, with literary gatherings led by authors such as Ernesto G.”. At that time he seduced the public with If Don Quixote were a mini-story and other fictions.
The manuscript reader for the Penguin Random House publishing house remembers another Tómate una Copa, where the Peruvian writer Pedro Medina León participated, with the theme En un lugar de Miami, whose name I don’t want to remember, held at the Spanish Cultural Center.
Another celebration for International Book Day was led by the important Cuban writer Daína Chaviano, titling her presentation Cervantes and Shakespeare: Convergences of two geniuses in the creation of characters.
Gal mentions other activities, one in which the poet Carlos Pintado participated, which on that occasion, due to the Covid pandemic, was titled, Have a Drink (at home). Pintado’s theme was Like Tale, Like Splinter. There was another one that was very spontaneous, since it was open to the public. The call indicated: “Celebrate International Book Day. On this occasion we want to invite you to come write with us and toast this important date.” Rosie Inguanzo, Lourdes Vázquez, Legna Rodríguez Iglesias, Joaquín Gálvez and Ena Columbié went there.
Mariela Gal highlights that the May 1 meeting aims to “encourage reading, promote culture and art, create a space for exchange and reflection on literature, as well as strengthen ties between the community through the written word.” . We also try to inspire the participants, generate dialogue and debate around the word, and enrich the cultural heritage of all attendees. It is a perfect occasion to meet in person cultural actors from the city with whom we usually work together.”
Also participating in the Koubek reading will be Héctor Manuel Gutiérrez for Nagari Magazine, Ramón Fernández Larrea for Ediciones Furtivas, Diana Rodríguez for CincoBooks, Carlos Pintado representing the Spanish Cultural Center of Miami, Roxana Coz Téstar for Ediciones UnosOtros, Javier Figueroa for Ediciones Universal ,
Juan Carlos Botero for Letra Urbana and the Venezuelan Camilo Pino for the Imago por las Artes center.
It results in a wide representation of authors with dissimilar expressions. “An open call to different types of literature and genres,” highlights Gal. Among the guests are also the actors Mabel Roch and Juan David Ferrer, representing the company Artefactus. “Thus, actors like Roch and Ferrer will have the opportunity to read texts and offer another interesting angle. What it is about is that literature be the protagonist, that is why the Artefactus proposal seemed perfect to us,” he highlights.
It is common for opinions to be aired on social networks regarding the inclusion or absence of institutions in events related to the Fair. When asked about possible reproaches, Mariela Gal clarifies: “In general there are no reproaches, but rather suggestions or constructive criticism.” According to the coordinator, the selection of the participants was made from “an archive of all the events held, and we based ourselves on this information to call on our local allies to celebrate with us on this occasion. For this reason, we chose to open the invitation to the city institutions with which we have recently collaborated and that have supported us in holding joint events.”
Then he clarifies: “We did not make a selection per se, we simply invited cultural agents friends of the Fair who wanted to join this literary celebration, and each of them proposed a representative author. It will be an occasion to see everyone, and of course all other institutions and people who wish to join us are invited to attend.”
The celebration of International Book Day leaves room for other issues of interest related to the scope of literature in Spanish in the context of a bilingual and multicultural society like Miami, where the Fair directed by Mariela Gal has a lot of weight, and is how to achieve the integration of young people into cultural life in Spanish.
“For ten years now, the Fair has been organizing, together with the Cuatrogatos Foundation, the Children’s Literature and Reading Seminar in which people who work with children and young people
(teachers, educators, librarians, mothers and fathers) have the opportunity to learn about the trends and state of children’s and youth literature. Likewise, the Book Picnic is organized regularly with the Koubek Center and the Cuatrogatos Foundation,” explains Gal, adding: “In addition, we regularly offer creative writing workshops in Spanish, talks with Spanish-speaking authors, and book presentations in Spanish. , literary contests in Spanish, and meeting spaces to share reading recommendations in this language. Finally, more than one hundred thousand Miami Dade College students attend the Fair week each November for free.”
The second issue that we address with the cultural manager is related to the growing censorship of certain books. PEN International recorded 4,349 cases of book bans in 23 states and 52 public school districts in the United States.
His response was very specific: “The Miami Book Fair at Miami Dade College actively promotes the defense of freedom of expression and highlights the importance of protecting it in a democratic environment.” Adding that “writers whose works have been censored in the past are invited, giving them a platform to share their ideas and experiences.” Another aspect he points out is that the Fair’s “programming is diverse, making sure to include a wide range of topics and perspectives and encouraging open dialogue and exchange of ideas between authors and readers.”
Gal expands on his response by adding that “the fair can create safe spaces where authors and readers feel comfortable sharing their opinions and debating controversial topics without fear of retaliation and establishing alliances with organizations that defend freedom of expression.” He then concludes: “the Fair protects freedom of expression and fights against censorship, thus strengthening its position as an event committed to these fundamental values.”
International Book Day in Miami will be celebrated on Wednesday, May 1, at 7 pm, at the Koubek Center, 2705 SW 3rd. Street, Miami, 33135. There will be author readings, book sales and a toast.
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