The Premio Alfaguara 2017 Winner
The 2017 recipient of the prestigious Premio Alfaguara literary award, a prize awarded to a previously unpublished work written in Spanish, is Ray Loriga of Spain. The announcement was made in Madrid last month. Loriga won for his novel Rendición (Surrender), which was chosen from among 665 manuscripts, significantly fewer than were submitted in previous years. Loriga will receive $175,000 along with the publication and distribution of the book in Spain, Latin America, and the U.S. by Alfaguara. The jury described the novel as “a Kafkaesque, Orwellian story about authority and collective manipulation.... Without falling into idealism, and through a humble, thoughtful voice with unexpected bursts of humor, the author constructs a luminous fable about exile, loss, parenthood, and affection. The plot of Rendición surprises us on every page and leads us to a stunning ending that resonates for the reader well after having put the book down.”
Loriga, who was born in Madrid in 1967, is a screenwriter, movie director, and author of more than a dozen novels that have been translated into 14 languages. As a screenwriter, he has collaborated with Pedro Almodóvar, who has said, “Ray Loriga is a fascinating cross between Marguerite Duras and Jim Thompson.”
This year, the Alfaguara Novel Prize celebrated its 20th anniversary. Alfaguara is a literary imprint founded in 1964 that is now part of Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial.
After Purchase, Ediciones B Continues with Spanish Publishers
In April PW announced Penguin Random House’s purchase of Barcelona-based trade publisher Ediciones B from Grupo Z. Currently, Ediciones B titles are distributed by Miami-based Spanish Publishers; in 2016, Spanish Publishers imported 1,036 new releases from Ediciones B, one of the largest publishers the distributor works with. Although this could change at some point and distribution be taken over by Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial (also based in Miami), Lucia Laratelli, president of Spanish Publishers, said, “For the time being, orders for books published by Ediciones B will continued to be sourced through Spanish Publishers.”
Maximo Potencial to Be Distributed by IPG
As of April 1, Independent Publishers Group began distributing titles from its 39th Spanish-language book publisher, Maximo Potencial. The publisher, based in Elche, Spain, was founded by José María Vicedo, a businessman, speaker on personal development, and author of such books as El plan de los 50 días (The Plan for 50 Days), a guide to transforming one’s life. Maximo Potencial primarily publishes such self-help titles as Desata tu poder ilimitado (Unleash the Power Within) by bestselling author Tony Robbins and El éxito del rinoceronte (Rhinoceros Success) by Scott Alexander. Diana Calice, managing director of IPG’s Spanish distribution program, said, “Self-help books in Spanish do very well in the U.S., and we were looking to increase our selection of these titles. We are expecting to have 20 titles from them in 2018 to add to their backlist that is already available in the U.S.”
