Reading on a beach is one of the great pleasures for many readers and bathers. And if, on top of that, they have a book fair on the same bank, the feeling of well-being is multiplied. This is what the large public that attended the sales, activities and reading stands installed in the central square of El Médano last weekend experienced.
Between bathing suits, flip-flops and the smell of sunscreen, authors, booksellers and customers filled a space far removed from the stereotypes of any conventional cultural act with life. Literature, sun and beach: these are the hallmarks of the El Médano Book Fair, which this year has recovered all its splendor, after the forced stoppage due to the pandemic. In this fifth edition, the exhibition has been dedicated to the world of comics. The comic against COVID. It is not a bad antidote.
“The book is an essential element for many people who go to the beach and here we offer them that double option: what better place to read!”, the Councilor for Culture of Granadilla de Abona, Eudita Mendoza, told this newspaper yesterday, who He expressed his satisfaction with the participation of the public and writers after “very hard” work that has been carried out “almost without time” once the sanitary restrictions were lifted.
One of the attractions of the fair, which was held for the first time over a full weekend, was the presence of two cartoonists hired by the City Council who made free cartoons for anyone who requested it. The long queues demonstrated the success of the measure. Mendoza also highlighted the great reception of the workshops on graphic narration, autofiction, shapes and colors, and especially thanked the response of bookstores, authors and attendees.
presentations
The fair featured the presentation of various publications, including Garafía, by Elías Taño; A walk through the lands of Spain and Portugal, by the chronicler Emiliano Guillén; Do not have a month left at the end of your salary, by Yaiza Díaz; History of El Médano and El Loco de la playa de Leocadio Machado, by José Vicente González, and Definitive Guide to Save the Planet, by Laura Afonso.
In addition to the exhibition at the bookstore stands, the public also had the opportunity to attend the signing of copies by authors such as José Dorta, Ana Belén Hormiga, Yauci Manuel Fernández, Bibiana Reyes and Carlos Marrero Expósito, among others. The little ones also enjoyed the puppet show by the Tragaluz company.
The El Médano Book Fair is a cultural project promoted by the Culture area of the Granadilla de Abona City Council that was born in 2017 and that is especially committed to Canarian authors and initiatives aimed at all audiences.
