The management has drawn up a balance sheet with figures very similar to those of last year’s edition: «Although we don’t have the definitive data yet, the sensations are excellent,» says Eva Orúe.

While waiting to provide definitive data on attendance and sales, which will be available in the middle of next week, the organizers of the Madrid Book Fair are grateful for the support received from readers who, despite the weather, have not stopped visiting the fair.

It has rained for most of the 17 days – 12, to be precise, making it the rainiest of this millennium – but the public, who usually come to the fair to buy their next books and meet their favorite authors, have not been deterred by it. This fact allows us to conclude that the 82.ƒª Feria del Libro de Madrid will close, at the very least, with sales figures similar to those of the last edition. «Although we don’t have the definitive data yet, the sensations are excellent,» says Eva Orúe, director of the Madrid Book Fair.

The fair’s management is also satisfied with the changes in structure incorporated, as well as with the positive reception received by the new formula for structuring the fair, which replaces that of a single guest country.

Science interests the reading community

Science, the backbone of this edition, has been the protagonist of numerous events and activities that have filled almost every day. This is an achievement that the fair’s organizers highlight especially for having contributed to giving the visibility that, according to them, this important part of the culture, which does not always receive it, deserves. The popularization of science has also occupied an important place in the fund provided by many exhibitors.

In this regard, the participation of the Union of Spanish University Publishers (UNE) has been fundamental, not only for the publishing offer provided but also for the dynamism it has breathed into the Science and Universities Plaza, presided over by the replica of a human brain installed by the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).

All this has made it possible to conclude that the reading community is interested in science and that, when intertwined with literature, it has turned out to be a safe bet.

Likewise, the Madrid Book Fair has been visited by some authorities of the different public administrations, as well as by delegations from three continents who have been interested in the process of organizing open-air fairs, and, specifically, the one in Madrid. For her part, Queen Letizia did not want to miss this edition either and attended the fair on a private visit.

Acknowledgments

In the chapter of thanks, Eva Orúe repairs, first of all, exhibitors, «who have been to the rainy hard and sunny ripe,» followed by the authors, «whose signatures are the hallmark of this fair,» and people «who have participated in more than 400 activities,» not forgetting all those who have joined the celebration of this annual cultural event around books and reading through parallel events, such as ‘Leer Iberoamerica lee‘. And, of course, «to the Madrid City Council, which makes everything easier for us and allows us to work at the Eugenio Trias Library; to those who take care of El Retiro, especially Caridad Melgarejo, its curatorial director, who watches over us and gives us homework to do for the garden that welcomes us; to the fair’s team, small and rocky, so committed; and to all those who have visited us, without whose presence nothing would make sense».

Text: Madrid Book Fair

Photography: Isabel Fuentes