Those of us who write for the love of literature do not compete. We are readers above all else and we admire other authors. We don't want to be anyone's bet. We are not racehorses", the writer and journalist Llucia Ramis denounces on the networks. Like her, some authors and booksellers have shown their disagreement with the list of Sant Jordi's best-selling books, provided on the 23rd by the Book Chamber; a ranking that has raised controversy after it changed the day before yesterday. According to the data from the consulting firm GfK and LibriRed, Xavier Bosch's novel March 32 (Univers / Catedral) leads the fiction in Catalan, while Gemma Ruiz Palà's Sant Jordi prize, Les nostres mares, falls back one position .
Éric del Arco, president of the Booksellers Guild and bookseller at Documenta, reminds La Vanguardia that "these titles are not usually representative of what is often sold locally. In our case, that day we sold 3,189 copies and the ones that succeeded the most only represent 7% of the total".
Although he explains that the most requested were novels that appear on the official list, he highlights Els meus dies a la libreria Morisaki (Navona / Plata), the first opera by S atoshi Yagisawa, which in less than two months reached its third edition and which elevates a small and discreet bookstore in Tokyo to a place of healing; a book that was also one of the best sellers on April 23 at the Laie bookstore by Pau Claris. Luís Morral, literary director of the establishment, points out "the growing interest in current Japanese narrative" and explains that, along with Yagisawa's, another of the books most in demand was Intimidades (Sexto Piso), from the American of Japanese origin Katie Kitamura, a read that encourages the reader to reflect on the extent to which you get to know the people around you.
From Central de Mallorca, in Barcelona, Neus Botellé recalls some of the readings he most recommended that Sunday, which "coincide with our own list, since in the end customers trust their trusted bookseller". Beyond Ruiz Palà and Maggie O'Farrell, "the authors who got the most attention", the public was interested in Elizabeth Finch (Angle Editorial / Anagrama), since "for years our readers have been very followers of Julian Barnes". From the same publishing house in Spanish – in Catalan the Periscopi edition – stands out Fortuna, by Hernán Díaz, a mysterious story about a tycoon from the twenties that "pleases both the most avid reader and the one less used to having a book between the hands". He also mentions La história dels vertebrates), a book in which Mar García Puig delves into postpartum depression, motherhood and mental health. "It has been proven that a list with the books that have sold the most in a single day is not representative of anything", he remarks.
Fernando Pelayo, from Bernat, is clear that all the successes of that day went to Megan Maxwell and her Mírame y bésame (Planeta), since the writer "was signing for three hours in our marquee, and this conditions a lot", and No todo el mundo (Sexto Piso), by Marta Jiménez, "one of those books that fits that age range that is often so difficult to recommend and that goes between the ages of 20 and 40”. The bookseller also highlights Aterratge (Club Editor / Tránsito), the novel with which Eva Piquer "focuses on a woman in mourning who remembers experiences until then buried", and Collado, by Carles Armengol, which "has just reaching its fifth edition" after Sant Jordi.
Raquel Fontecha, from La Irreductible, highlights the particularity of Lleida, since "customers, at least ours, usually opt for local authors, such as Emili Bayo and his Després de la tempesta ) or Pep Coll, who returns with magnificence with God's Long Nap (Proa). In Spanish, on the other hand, the leading role was taken by Edurne Portela with Maddi y las fronteras).
Something similar happens in Girona, since one of the books that sold the most was that of the journalist Tura Soler. "Since he became one of the regular faces of Carles Porta's crime show, his books are selling themselves," acknowledges Lourdes Cidera, from Empúries bookstore.
"Each bookstore has its particularity and the titles will never be the same. And this is a fantastic thing", claims Elisabeth Sánchez from the Tarragona bookstore El Soterrani, and she has no doubt that her usual recommendations will be joined by names such as E duard Márquez, Cristina García Molina, Damon Galgut and Elin Cullhed, nominated authors for the Librarian prize.
