Writers and Barcelona
Barcelona has been and keeps being a perfect scene for literary works, a source of inspiration for writers who were born here and a welcoming place for writers from around the world who have described it in their books.
A
Mercè ANZIZU
(Barcelona, 1868 – 1916)
Religious, writer and historian, also known as Sor Eulàlia Anzizu. She spent twenty-one years living at the Royal Monastery of Pedralbes, from where she wrote about its history. She was a great friend of Jacint Verdaguer, who encouraged her to continue writing poetry, and also of Antoni Gaudi. Her uncle was Eusebi Güell. She was one of the women of the Renaissance, widely travelled, and her literature is a female testament on a time when women were excluded from the intellectual fabric in the city.
More information
More information (escritoras.com)
José Ramón ARANA
(Zaragoza, 1906 – Barcelona, 1973)
A self-taught novelist, he worked at the Can Girona metal factory in Barcelona, a life that is reflected in his novel Can Girona, por el desván de los recuerdos (1973).
Rafael ARGULLOL
(Barcelona, 1949)
A philosopher and writer, he is a professor of Aesthetics and Art Theory at the Faculty of Humanities of Pompeu Fabra University. Winner of the Nadal award in 1993 for his novel La razón del mal, he has had over thirty titles published including works of literature, poetry and essays.
Avel·lí ARTÍS GENER (Tísner)
(Barcelona 1912 – 2000)
A writer and journalist, following the Spanish civil war he was exiled to Mexico until 1965, the year in which he returned to Barcelona. Among others, he is author of the memoirs Veure i viure, published in four volumes between 1989 and 1996.
Andreu AVEL·LÍ ARTÍS (Sempronio)
(Barcelona, 1908 – Sitges, 2006)
A writer, journalist, and chronicler of the city, he is a contributor to Mirador, Revista de Catalunya, Diario de Barcelona and La Vanguardia and director of Tele/eXprés and Tele/estel. He dedicated many of his articles and books to Barcelona, such as Barcelona era una fiesta and Quan Barcelona portava barret.
Félix de AZÚA
(Barcelona, 1944)
A poet, essayist and novelist, he has been a member of the Spanish Royal Academy since 2016. In 1987 he won the Herralde novel writing award for his work Diario de un hombre humillado (1987). He has been living in Madrid since 2011.
B
Enrique BADOSA
(Barcelona, 1927)
Graduated in Philology and Literature from the University of Barcelona, he is a poet, translator, essayist and literary critic. His poetry book Marco Aurelio 14 (1998), is named after the street in Barcelona where he lived.
Borja BAGUNYÀ
(Barcelona, 1982)
He is a writer, a doctor in Theory of Literature and Comparative Literature, a lecturer on the degree in Literary Studies at the University of Barcelona, and co-founder and teacher at the Bloom literature school in Barcelona. In 2006, he won the Mercè Rodoreda award for stories and writing for his work Defensa pròpia (2007), and he is also author of the collection of strories Apunts per al retrat d'una ciutat (2004) and Plantes d'interior (2011).
Anna BALLBONA
(Montmeló, 1980)
Journalist and writer, she collaborates with media such as El Punt Avui or the magazine El Temps. She's the author of the collections of poems La mare que et renyava era un robot (2012, Premi Amadeu Oller a poetes joves) and Conill de gàbia (2012). With her first novel, Joyce i les gallines (2016), she was finalist of the Llibres Anagrama novel prize.
Maria BARBAL
(Tremp, 1949)
Novelist, author of Stone in a Landslide, set in the Pallars area where she grew up. In 1964 she moved to Barcelona, where the action from some of her subsequent novels unfolds, such asCarrer Bolívia (1999), Bella edat (2003), País íntim (2005) and Emma (2008).