The Meteocat page is probably one of the most visited websites this week in Catalonia. Booksellers, authors and readers are more attentive than ever to the sky after the inclement weather last Sant Jordi, which caused considerable losses, both due to books damaged by water and because they had to cease their activity for several hours. As if that were not enough, the fall of tents slightly injured four people. “It was a real nightmare. And that we were not the ones who suffered the most because our stand resisted”, recalls Sofía Machain, communication manager at the Finestres bookstore.
As far as time is concerned, little can be done, beyond fixing the tents well and putting the specimens in a safe place. "A lesson that, without a doubt, we have all learned," says Fernando Pelayo, from the Bernat bookstore. But what is in the hands of booksellers and publishers is to organize everything so that it is ready for the weekend. Opening boxes, preparing the copies that will be at the stops and finishing closing all the signatures are some of the most repeated tasks these days. “To all this we must add the tasks that are already done regularly in the bookstore, which are not few. But blessed madness”, acknowledges the bookseller seconds before picking up the insistent phone. "It hasn't stopped ringing all morning," says Montse Serrano, owner of the establishment, while she attends to a client who asks her for advice on giving a novel to her friend.
Neus, from the Central de la calle Mallorca, is just as busy answering emails and placing newly arrived books in the store. She has learned to do it almost without looking at the shelf, since not a minute goes by without someone coming to ask for the location of a copy. “Even though it is noon, we are full. The increase in people on these dates is noticeable. Many want to buy in advance to avoid crowds, which forces us to be at full capacity for days."
Iolanda Batallé, in charge of ONA Pau Claris, shares the reflection. “It is becoming more and more evident that Sant Jordi is a party that lasts ten days. The 23rd is a unique day in which magic unfolds, but the days leading up to it are increasingly full of related activities, such as the concert this Friday by the Malalletra band of writers. It is for this reason that there are many of us who stop the usual presentations for one or two weeks to be able to focus on everything going well. We must not forget that we are at stake because these are days in which a third of the turnover for the entire year is achieved. Of course, we have to work so that the figures are just as good for the remaining 364 days ”.
For everything to go smoothly this weekend, good management is "primary", since "otherwise, we would be doomed to failure," insists Batallé, who explains that he has been doing numbers and talking with authors since the end of January to come sign.
For his part, Èric del Arco, Documenta bookseller and president of the Gremi de Llibreters, confesses that “the last boxes are still to arrive. It is usually difficult to ask for more and you end up falling short. But the good thing is that you realize this these days and you have room to make a last request”. Del Arco does not want anyone to be left without the book they are looking for, although this is not always so easy to foresee, and even more so taking into account the influx of people expected this Sunday, as pointed out by the president of the Chamber of Books , Patrici Tixis, in a press conference at the beginning of the month, in which he predicted that this 2023 will be "the best party in the history of this celebration."
Del Arco is prudent and prefers not to position himself, although he acknowledges that "the feelings are very good, especially if we take into account that we are coming from a pandemic." He points out that this edition is the one in which, "in professional terms, there are more people organized and, surely, more stops." But he asks that no one stay with it. “You are not looking so much for quantity, but for quality. That Sant Jordi has infinite stands is not something that is sought. The only thing we want is for everything to go ahead and for us to end up exhausted but happy. And surely it will be so, ”he concludes.
