Laura Riñón, owner of Amapolas en octubre: «Spain may not be one of the countries where people read the most, but they read much more than they think and we should also talk about it».

In our tour to know the bookstores of our country, we stopped at Amapolas en octubre, a bookstore that was born in the pages of a novel by the owner herself, Laura Riñón. It is a peculiar bookstore since it gives rise to original initiatives that have not always been found in a bookstore.

How and when did the idea of founding Amapolas en octubre arise?

Amapolas en octubre was born in the pages of a novel I published in 2016. Two years after it saw the light, I decided to take the scenario out of the pages and turn it into a reality. And I can assure you that reality has surpassed -by far- fiction.

Can you tell us more about the «La librería ambulante» initiative? How has it been received by professionals?

The traveling bookstore is an initiative that was created to bring literature to the workplace. We make a selection of 25 titles that can be expanded or adapted to the needs of the client. It is a library where employees can discover titles and exchange impressions on the selected readings.

What other activities does the bookstore organize?

In the bookstore, we have all kinds of activities related to the world of books, from presentations, and book signings to meetings with authors, publishers, or translators. We also have monographic workshops given by writers. And we organize «Literary Wines», an initiative that consists of organizing a book club around a book, and we always have the presence of the author. As well as «Literary Brunch» in collaboration with the Only You Boutique Hotel.

What has been the most gratifying thing so far about having a bookstore?

The complicity and loyalty of the readers who have trusted and trusted our criteria when it comes to choosing the titles we have in the bookstore.

What are the best-selling genres?

Narrative and literary essays, as well as books in English, illustrated books, and travel books. Our selection is very careful, so almost everything we have is successful because we choose with the certainty that this is what readers are looking for.

Are there any titles that your readers ask for a lot?

Most readers come to us to discover a different title or ask about the ones we recommend in our channels. Amapolas en octubre is a bookstore where we bet on medium or small publishers and we have managed to build reader loyalty. We have survived for four years, pandemic by pandemic, faithful to our criteria, and together with other independent bookstores that have been opening in recent years I think we should celebrate that there are more and more quality and demanding readers with the titles they choose. Spain may not be one of the countries where people read the most, but they read much more than they think and we should also talk about it. Bookstores like ours are the proof.