Fiesta del Libro y la Rosa 2024

From Friday, April 21st to Sunday, April 23rd, and across 3 venues, the Book and Rose Festival 2024 was presented in Mexico City. More than 220 publishers were convened, and over 7 discussion forums, book presentations, and talks were set up, in addition to offering workshops, concerts, and theater performances, all completely free and open to the public. It was impossible to cover everything among the numerous stands and activities, and the fact that it was divided among the University Cultural Center, the Tlatelolco University Cultural Center, and the Chopo Museum. However, like sweet things, it’s worth sampling a bit of everything to savor it truly.

In the University Cultural Center plaza, a tent covering 83 of the more than 145 available stands was set up; the others were arranged in front of the Juan Ruíz de Alarcón theater and the Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz forum and along the path to the theater area parking lot. It’s worth mentioning that Teatro UNAM also participated in this event by setting up the Carro de Comedias at the back of the fair, offering performances open to the public. Among the book stands, there were also 7 discussion tents, 2 workshop tents, and a UNAM Radio booth with a speaker pointing outward for visitors to listen to the program being broadcast inside, which included interviews with guest authors.

UNAM dedicated spaces to some of its faculties and entities, such as the UNAM Film Library, which presented its research texts as well as DVDs of national and international films; similarly, Ciencia UNAM had a stand dedicated to its publications in the form of popular science magazines. Several faculties were represented, including the Faculty of Art and Design, which showcased its catalog of design books, and the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, represented by its Philology College and Philosophy College. Among many others, the largest and most striking stand was that of UNAM Books, which included titles such as “Monstrua: Antología de 10 escritoras mexicanas” , which, despite being released a couple of years ago, remains relevant and attractive due to its narrative proposal. Following the same trend of giving voice to women, “Mujeres insurgentes de los años 70: Género y lucha armada” was also among the booksellers, remaining an essential research piece worthy of consideration for understanding our history.

While among the participating publishers was “Leetra” specializing in children’s books and featuring engaging materials for children to interact with, this was the boldest move made at the University Cultural Center. Meanwhile, the other two festival venues took a different approach, more open to independent and alternative content proposals.

At Museo del Chopo, stands were full of fanzines, illustrations, artwork, and second-hand books, offering a wide range for those seeking more than conventional books. Similarly, the museum provided a space for book presentations, with speakers and attendees at the same floor level and a very short distance apart, thus providing a sense of intimacy.

The perfect balance between these two venues was Centro Cultural Tlatelolco, which provided the Juárez hall for over 50 publishers to present a variety of conventional books, children’s books, fanzines, illustrations, comics, second-hand books, and art books. The proposals were diverse, offering titles for all tastes and ages, combining the “conventional” and the “alternative,” taking the best of both worlds. Nonetheless, regardless of the venue one chose to visit, all spaces were an excellent option to explore, just like they are throughout the year, as among the museum’s permanent exhibitions, temporary exhibitions, theater billboards, and workshops, the Book and Rose Festival is just a taste of UNAM’s entire cultural offering.

Inkitt: BbyKevs
Wattpad: @SugoiKevs
TikTok: @bbykevs