The Book of Barcelona A City in Short Fiction

by Turner, Zoe; Punti, Jordi; Zanón, Carlos; Moliner, Empar; Gurt, Carlota; Ramis, Llucia; Ollé, Manel; Bagunyà, Borja; Torné, Gonzalo; Nopca, Jordi; Guillén, Francesc Serés; Orriols, Marta

• ISBN13: 9781910974056
• ISBN10: 1910974056
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2021-12-02
• Publisher: Comma Press

Summary

A slighted wife escapes her wealthy family for the evening and stumbles into the city’s red-light district… The head of security at Barcelona’s container port searches for a figure that only he has seen sneak in… An elderly woman brings home a machine that will turn her body into atoms, so she can leave behind a city that is no longer recognisable… Historically, Barcelona is a city of resistance and independence; a focal point for Catalan identity, as well as the capital of Spanish republicanism. Nestled between the Mediterranean coast and mountains, this burgeoning city has also been home to some of the greatest names in modern art and architecture, and attracts visitors and migrants from all over the world. As a result, the city is a melting-pot of cultures, and the stories gathered here offer a miscellany of form and genre, fittingly reminiscent of one of Gaudi’s mosaics. From the boy-giant outgrowing his cramped flat on the city’s outskirts, to the love affair that begins in a launderette, we meet characters who are reclaiming the independence of their city by challenging common misconceptions and telling its myriad truths.

Author Biography

Zoe graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with a BA in English Literature having developed a specific interest in contemporary poetry. She went on to complete a Masters in Film and Television: Research and Production at the University of Birmingham. Zoe has previously run workshops to encourage community engagement with short form writing, and has worked alongside organisations such as Ort Gallery and The Barber Institute of Fine Arts to create films for digital engagement. She has also programmed film events for HOME and Flatpack Festival. Jordi Puntí was born in 1967 and lives in Barcelona. He is a Catalan language writer, columnist, and translator. He has published two books of short stories: Pell d’Armadillo (Armadillo Skin, 1998) and Animals Tristos (Sad Animals, 2002). In 2010 he published his first novel, Maletes Perdudes (Lost Luggage), which received the National Critics’ Award, the El Llibreter (booksellers prize) and the prestigious Lletra d’Or, and has been translated into 16 languages. His most recent book is Els Castellans (2011), a memoir about the daily life in a Catalan industrial town in the 1970’s. Born in Barcelona in 1966, Carlos Zanón is a poet, novelist, screenwriter and columnist. Since the eighties he has published both poetry and fiction, and in 2015 he won the Hammett Prize for the best detective novel in Spanish for Yo fui Johnny Thunders (2014). Today, he is considered one of the most promising authors of the genre. Empar Moliner burst onto the Catalan and Spanish literary scene in 1999 with her book, L' ensenyador de pisos que odiava els mims, a collection of satirical stories demonstrating a cold, sarcastic, and sometimes shocking view of everyday obsession. Her first novel, Feli, esthéticienne, is a comic account of passion; it was awarded the prominent Josep Pla Prize in 2000. Her collection of stories, T'estimo si he begut, was awarded the most influential Catalan literary prize, the Lletra d'Or Prize, and was voted the book of the year by La Vanguardia and El Periódico magazines. Carlota Gurt is a Catalan translator and writer. She has a degree in Translation and Interpretation from UVIC, in Humanities, Business and East Asian Studies from the UOC and in Audiovisual Communication from the UAB. In 2019 she won the Mercè Rodoreda Award for the collection We will ride all night. Llucia Ramis is a Catalan language journalist and writer. She studied journalism at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, and has worked in different media, including the newspaper Diario de Mallorca, the literary magazine Quimera, COM Ràdio, Rac1 and the Catalan edition of El Mundo newspaper. Manel Ollé is a lecturer in History and Culture of Contemporary China in the Department of Humanities at the Pompeu Fabra University of Barcelona (UPF), and coordinator of the Master’s Degree in Chinese Studies, also at the UPF. Borja Bagunyà is one of the most outstanding authors from the new generation of Catalan writers. He holds a degree in literary theory and comparative literature, and his three published works have met with great praise from critics. Gonzalo Torné is a Spanish writer. He was born in Barcelona in 1976. He has published three novels: Hilos de sangre, Divorcio en el aire, and Años felices. He has also written a literary study titled Tres maestros where he analyzes the works of Saul Bellow, V. S. Naipaul and Javier Marías. Jordi Nopca is a Spanish journalist, writer and translator. He is a current editor of Ara newspaper and the editor-in-chief of Ara Llegim. Francesc Serés Guillén is a Catalan language writer. He obtained a Fine Arts degree and another in Anthropology from the University of Barcelona and, in 2001, the title of Research Aptitude from the Pompeu Fabra University of Barcelona. Marta Orriols is a Catalan writer. She graduated in History of Art. She has published a collection of short stories Anatomia de les distàncies curtes and her first nov