Javier Cercas wins Chains d’Written – publico

                 

                         
                     

                         

                 

 
 

The Varzim Casino prize, worth 20,000 euros, was awarded this Wednesday, the 17th edition of Currents festival d’inscriptions, the Spanish novelist Javier Cercas for his novel Frontier laws , published in Portugal by Assyrian & amp; Alvim.

The jury, composed of Carlos Vaz Marques, Helena Vasconcelos, Isabel Pires de Lima, John Rios and Jose Manuel Fajardo, justified the choice made by a majority, with ” attention “that the author pays” to the great questions of contemporary society “as the” social inclusion and exclusion, “the” demarcation of border areas “or” the experience of banks and conflict. “

the minutes of jury also stresses the “narrative construction attentive to the polyphony of voices and their different modes of memory call,” this novel, originally published in 2012, which deals with Spain in the early years of democracy.

Born in 1962, Javier Cercas won international notoriety after the publication of the novel Salamina Soldiers (2001), edited in Portugal by Asa. Already after the now award-winning Border Laws , Fences published in 2014 The Impostor .

The remaining 12 finalists premium, which contributed 170 works were Claudia Clemente, Dulce Maria Cardoso, Valter Hugo Mother, Mario de Carvalho, José Eduardo Agualusa, Luísa Costa Gomes, Valerio Romao, Teresa Veiga, Paulo Castilho, Lidia Jorge, Brazilian Daniel Galera and Cuban Leonardo Padura.

Javier Cercas was not in the room when the award was announced, but it will come to the festival, where it participates, Friday evening, a round table which will discuss the theme the mind writer, the reader believes .

After the announcement of the prize, the poet and essayist Ana Luisa Amaral spoke on behalf of the present writers , noting that 17 years Chains d’Written make this festival a “serious and long-standing case,” and stressing “the accomplice dialogue” that the meeting of Varzim provides between writers from various countries, “talking about this common language, but always foreign, which is literature. ”

The Minister of Culture, João Soares, was present at the meeting, explaining that his presence was due to the writers and editors Maria do Rosário Pedreira and Manuel Alberto Valente, who , barely took office, he was told he had to go to the currents d’writings. He expressed satisfaction for the victory of Javier Cercas, who had read Border Laws and is now read The Impostor .

the Minister ended with a tribute to Manuela Ribeiro, largely responsible for the organization of the festival, whose work had been praised by Ana Luisa Amaral, and it was a standing ovation.

the councilman of Culture of Póvoa de Varzim, Louis Diamond, also paid tribute to the priest and historian poveiro João Francisco Marques, who died in March 2015, a few days after having participated in the previous edition festival, presenting the complete works of Antonio Vieira. In the end, the magazine chains d’Written was presented this year dedicated to the novelist António Lobo Antunes.

In the Cine-Teatro Garrett, the poet and essayist Tolentino Mendonça opens this afternoon the festival works with an inaugural conference entitled the Silence of Books . Until the 27th, they will meet in Povoa de Varzim 80 writers Iberian expression coming from 11 countries.