THE BOOKSTORES AND BOOKSELLERS OF
"Calonge, Poble de Llibres"
The Calonge booktown is made up of bookstores with different characteristics. There are two generalists, Libelista and Rals Llibres. And more specific ones: La Viatgeria, Calonge Comics, Mengem Cultura and La Fàbrica.
There are bookshops that, within the specificity of each one, attend to both the novelty and the publishing stock. And that they go to one, that is to say, that from the first moment they were clear that this is a collective and integrated project, a kind of cluster that needs to attract an audience that goes far beyond the scope county, which has a real appeal and alternative to sun and beach tourism, which is close at hand, just three kilometers away from the town of Calonge.
Therefore, the Calonge booktown transcends the strictly national scope. Therefore, as well as books in Catalan, they can be found in Spanish, and also in English, French, German and Italian, mainly.
Cristina Vilà and Xavier Bastús
LA VIATGERIA - C/ Rutlla, 12
Behind this project is a couple of entrepreneurs and travelers. Cristina Vilà is an expert in sustainability, heads the travel agency Agrotravel Turisme Responsable and participates in different sustainable tourism projects both locally and nationally, while Xavier Bastús is an entrepreneur with great creativity and a track record professional as project coordinator. Your bookstore will be a cultural and traveling ecosystem where a bookstore with a desire to show the world, a travel agency to discover it and many activities to create bonds will live together. With the complicity of their travel agency Agrotravel, they will propose responsible trips and offer a whole section of habits, products and knowledge about sustainable living.
Meritxell Ral
RALS LLIBRES - C/ Major, 13
Rals Llibres is a generalist and illustrated bookstore that wants to be a meeting point for young and old restless and dreamers. Specially focused on the constant search for background books, you can find narrative, illustrated albums and informative essay books. Meritxell Ral is a bookseller from Barcelona with a degree in Humanities and in Theory of Literature and Comparative Literature who has worked in the world of books since the end of her studies and who, after training and collaborating in the publishing field, now undertakes this personal project.
Belén Vieyra
LIBELISTA CALONGE - Plaça Major, 4
Libelista Calonge will be a generalist bookshop with books in Catalan, Spanish, English, French and German. Its aim is to become a cultural and literary centre where the bookshops that are part of the online platform Libelista feel represented. It also aims to bring independent bookshops closer to their readers through values based on responsible, fair and local trade, always marked by networking and teamwork. The bookshop will also promote culture with reading clubs, children’s activities and literary vermouths. Behind this project is Belén Vieyra, a writer of Latin American origin, author of “El alma”, “Continuando el viaje” and “La gloria eterna o la derrota incansable?”, winners of the Letras & Poesía 2019 Awards. In parallel, she has worked in the field of accounting and economic consultancy, offering creative writing services, text correction and editorial layout, among others.
Sergi Martínez
CALONGE CÒMICS - C/ Major, 27
Promoted by Sergi Martínez, and with the support and advice of Norma Editorial, Calonge Cómics will be a bookstore specializing in the world of comics (American and European), manga and graphic novels. The bookstore will also have a corner dedicated to countercultural and artistic topics, as well as a space for board games. Coming from the world of architecture, its promoter is creator and director of an internet record label, concert organizer and technician and socio-cultural dynamist.
Lídia Lobato
La FÀBRICA - Plaça Major, 1
LA FÀBRICA will be a bookstore specializing in Music at the same time as a wine bar focused on Empordà wines. In it you can find books that refer to a wide range of musical styles, as well as sheet music, instruments, teaching material, vinyls and articles related to the world of music as well as advice and creative solutions.
La Fàbrica aims to pair music and wine and be a meeting place and create synergies, a place where you can listen to good music, drink good wine and do a tasting. A space to pay tribute to Calonge, land of musicians and land of wines.
Behind this project you will find Lídia Lobato, composer and singer, who has dedicated a large part of her life to the stage and who is now rooted in Calonge, to make her project a reality.
Mònica Martínez
MENGEM CULTURA - C/ del Càlcul, 2
Mengem Cultura · Bookstore & Catering is born from our passion for the culinary world, it is a gastronomic bookstore where, in addition to books on the subject of gastronomy, you will find local products (wines, beers, cavas…) and a very special area with items from gift related to the world of gastronomy. At Mengem Cultura you can also enjoy a program of courses and tastings.
7 CYCLES AROUND LITERATURE
7 cultural cycles with the aim of spreading literature and the world of books and turning Calonge into a quality cultural destination and a permanent meeting point for writers, publishers, translators, booksellers and readers.
The 7 cycles have activities designed for all types of public, they complement the usual cultural program of the municipality and the activities developed by the 7 bookstores of “Calonge, Poble de Llibres”.
