Abrapalabra returns to Madrid as one of the most powerful events dedicated to children's and young adult literatureWith its second edition, the festival solidifies its position as a key event for families, book professionals, and story lovers. For ten days, the capital transforms into a grand literary stage where words, images, and music come together.
under the motto "It is written in the sky"This year's proposal revolves around the relationship between stories and the heavens, reviving that ancient view in which the sky functioned almost as an open book. The artistic director, Ana Cristina HerrerosHe insists on the idea that the first form of reading had to do with the stars, the clouds, the wind, or the birdsongAnd the festival is structured precisely to invite people to read what is visible and also what is not seen at first glance.
The project is driven by the Montemadrid Foundation y La Fábrica, with the support of Ministry of Culture, la Region of Madrid and the Town Hall, in addition to various European embassies and cultural institutes. La Casa Encendida is the epicenter of the programmingAlthough this year the festival also extends to other spaces in the city, such as count DukeEducational centers, libraries and cultural venues in different neighborhoods.
The event takes place throughout ten intense daysCombining activities at La Casa Encendida with events throughout Madrid. In the first few days, the focus is primarily on families and early childhood, while in the final stretch, the emphasis shifts to youth programs and professional networking. With over a hundred activities planned, including workshops, shows, guided tours, storytelling and creative labsThe program is designed so that each age group can find its place.
Another distinctive feature of Abrapalabra is the social dimension of the project. Beyond the usual venues, the festival travels to schools, senior centers, neighborhood libraries, a prison, and municipal reception resourcescreating connections between very different readers. In these spaces, literature becomes an excuse to converse, draw, write letters, or reinterpret classic myths from the perspective of everyday experience.
Guest authors and international figures in children's and young adult literature
Among the most recognized names are the illustrator Violeta López, National Illustration Award 2025 and author of the graphic image of this edition, or the writer Beatriz Giménez de Ory, National Children's Literature Prize 2021The festival also features the participation of Juan Gomez-Jurado and Barbara Montes, responsible for the popular saga Amanda Black, who will offer a specific workshop aimed at young readers interested in learning how to build an adventure story.
The international presence is strengthened by creators such as the Dutch artist Karina Schaapman, known for the universe of "Sam & Julia – The House of Mice"who has become a benchmark in picture books. She is joined by authors such as the Estonian Ulla Saar, the Belgian Kitty Crowther (winner of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award), the Norwegian Kristin Roskifte or the illustrator and writer bea lemma, National Comic Award 2024, among other prominent names in the European sphere.
On the national level, the lineup is completed with voices such as Mónica Rodríguez, Gustavo Martín Garzo (National Children's Literature Award 2004), Gabriel Pacheco and a large representation of illustrators and oral storytellers who work with very diverse audiences. The idea is not just to sign books, but to foster a real dialogue between creators, readers, and mediators (teachers, librarians, booksellers, families), with open conversations and participatory workshops.
In addition to the more informative sessions, Abrapalabra includes a block of activities for professionals from the children's and young adult book sector. Talks, workshops, and a specific workshop on picture books, coordinated by the illustrator Beatriz Martín Vidalwhere both narrative issues and aspects of editing, illustration and international circulation of the work will be addressed.
The neuroscientist Nazareth Castellanos She also joins the program with a workshop for children that explores the relationship between rhythm, breathing and brainIt demonstrates in an accessible way how the body functions as a kind of internal orchestra that needs to be tuned. This blend of science, play, and storytelling aligns with the festival's aim to mix disciplines while keeping children in mind.
A motto that looks to the sky: literature, cosmos and shared imagination
The theme "It is written in the sky" serves as the common thread throughout the festivalIt's not just a slogan; it materializes in activities that take the sky as a starting point to investigate fragility, desires, the passage of time, and shared fears. In the words of Ana Cristina Herreros, perhaps the first thing we learned to read wasn't letters, but the movements of the stars and the changing shapes of the clouds.
With that idea in mind, much of the programming proposes exercises in reading the visible and the invisible. They recover celestial myths and legendary figures To engage with current reality, improvisations are made. skies invented in workshops for girls and boys Activities are designed where observation, drawing, and storytelling blend seamlessly. The aim is simple: to encourage looking upwards, but also inwards, with the help of books.
The festival officially opens in the courtyard of La Casa Encendida with the show "What Heaven Tells", a proposal that combines oral storytelling, live music, and live illustrationThe narrator will be on stage Hector Urien, the musician Lisandro Mansilla and the illustrator Maria Pascual de la Torre, responsible for shaping a session in which stellar myths, imaginary constellations and legendary characters fit together as they go.
Another key element of this thematic thread is the installation "Imaginary Courses", Signed by Elena ValIt emerged from the workshop "We all make heaven together", in which each participant designs a planet of their own, their spaceship, and the necessary tools to achieve their goalsAll of this material ends up shaping an exhibition intervention that functions as a collective map of desires and life trajectories.
Outside the building, the participatory project "The sky is always blue", by the Norwegian illustrator Kristin RoskifteIt is being built day by day with drawings and contributions from the public about diversity, coexistence and possible futuresIt's not just about decorating a wall, but about leaving a graphic record of how those who come to the festival imagine the world.
Installations, exhibitions and immersive spaces at La Casa Encendida
One of Abrapalabra's biggest draws is its commitment to Art installations that transform reading into a physical and sensory experienceThe most talked about is "Microcosm", created by Violeta López next to the studio Gheada, with the support of Institut d'Estudis BaleàricsIn this proposal, an exhibition hall at La Casa Encendida is transformed into an immersive environment of light, sound and observation of the minuscule, which invites you to stroll, stop and look at the details.
Lópiz herself also runs the family workshop "The answer is blowing in the wind."Designed for children aged three and up. Participants in this activity... They create birds from paper and other lightweight materials which end up forming a collective flock, almost as if the air were another canvas on which to continue writing stories. It is a simple activity, yet full of symbolism, connecting with the festival's reflections on the sky, movement, and the ephemeral.
The Dutch artist Karina Schaapman presents one of its miniatures of "The House of Mice", brought to the festival with the support of Netherlands Embassy and the Dutch Letter FundsThe piece offers a glimpse into the meticulous work behind her books, with tiny rooms filled with objects that tell stories on their own. Furthermore, Schaapman offers a guided tour for families in which he explains the artisanal and narrative process of his work.
Along with these proposals, Abrapalabra includes a inclusive reading corner where accessible titles have been selected, an area of signing tables and a program guided tours to the various exhibitions. Part of the narratives includes sign language interpretationso that more people can follow the stories without communication barriers.
The courtyard, rooms, and corridors of the building also fill up with collective interventions and small creative devices that force a change of pace: from collage compositions to collaborative murals, including stations where the public can leave messages, drawings, or fragments of stories. During those days, the building becomes a kind of three-dimensional book in constant rewriting.
Suggestions for all ages: from babies to young adult and adult readers
One of Abrapalabra's stated goals is that no one is left out because of their age.The program has been designed with specific time slots, but also with activities intended for families to enjoy together without separating children and adults. Therefore, there are shows for babies, workshops for teenagers, and meetings for adults interested in children's and young adult literature.
For early childhood, the following have been planned shows aimed at babies from 0 to 3 years oldWith reduced capacity and special attention to rhythm, light, and sound, these are delicate offerings designed to introduce young children to... the word and the music in a gentle way, and so that families can have a shared space without haste or excessive noise.
As age increases, problems arise reading labs, creation workshops of fanzines, spaces live storytelling y podcasts recorded in front of an audienceIn these formats, boys and girls can experiment with writing, illustration, and voice-over from their own stories, accompanied by professionals who help them refine their ideas and give them narrative form.
For young adults, a section focused on the creative process of genre fiction stands out, featuring authors such as Juan Gomez-Jurado and Barbara Montes, which they share with young readers how to build characters, plots, and fictional worlds. They are also organized specific illustration workshops, like the one Estonia leads Ulla Saar, in which participants are invited to design imaginary keys and symbolic objects that function as a gateway to different stories.
The adult audience has a program of meetings, talks and round tables with authors, editors, booksellers, and other professionals. These spaces serve as a platform to reflect on the current state of children's and young adult literature in Spain and Europe, the challenges of reading mediation, and trends in contemporary illustration. For those who work with children and young people in schools, libraries, or social projects, the festival also becomes a ideas and resources laboratory.
"An author in a suitcase" and the social dimension of the festival
Beyond La Casa Encendida, Abrapalabra is deploying a program that connects neighborhoods, schools, and vulnerable groups.One of the most significant initiatives is "An author in a suitcase", which began filming weeks before the official start of the festival and is still active during these days.
The project consists of a suitcase that travels through primary and secondary schools, loaded with a selection of seven books. That same suitcase is also sent to senior centers and other community resources in the same districtso that people of different ages and backgrounds can read the same titles almost simultaneously.
Among the books included in the tour are works such as "Bird", Beatriz Martín Vidalwhich serves as the basis for a Exchange between inmates of the Soto del Real penitentiary (Madrid V) and 4th year ESO students from the municipal institute. Based on the reading, a joint activity is organized to discuss the images, the silences of the book and the personal interpretations that arise in each group.
We also work with "Icarus", Irene Zottola, in a meeting between students of the Lope de Vega Institute and older people from Chamberí book club, with an appointment at the library Pérez Galdós del Conde DuqueIn this case, the young people have prepared poems and rewritings of mythMeanwhile, the older ones have developed their own versions of the Icarus story, generating an intergenerational dialogue around the fall, the limit, and the desire to go further.
Another title traveling in the suitcase is "The astronaut's son", Elena Vala story that addresses Absence, family separation, and a child's imagination who invents the story that his father is an astronaut to make sense of what he doesn't understand. This blend of reality and fantasy fits perfectly with the festival's approach, which doesn't shy away from complex themes but handles them with sensitivity.
The "An Author in a Suitcase" device is completed with letters, drawings and small artistic pieces that intersect between the different participating groups. The goal is for readers not to simply consume stories, but to respond, engage in dialogue, and recognize themselves in the perspectives of others. For many people who don't usually attend literary festivals, this can be the gateway to the Abrapalabra experience.
Workshops, laboratories and creative experiences in collaboration with other venues
The second edition of Abrapalabra is not limited to La Casa Encendida. The festival expands to other cultural spaces in Madridas the count Duke —under the umbrella of Contemporánea Condeduque— and San Cristóbal HouseIn addition to collaborating with commercial and social initiatives that are part of the project.
At Casa San Cristóbal, also part of the Montemadrid Foundation, the illustrator Elena Hormiga teaches the lab "It all starts with a line"A Mini Creativity Lab developed with technology BIC KidsThe proposal encourages Explore line, gesture, and visual storytelling From the simplest things, starting from the idea that any drawing, however complex it may seem, is born from a line.
In the field of illustration, the artist Kitty Crowther proposes a workshop dedicated to invent imaginary skies and landscapes with girls and boys, while Marta Conejo It focuses on the design of dragons inspired by literary charactersMeanwhile, the Polish illustrator and therapist Marcin Minor guide a session to create imaginary worlds created from stains and splashes of color, emphasizing the freedom of gesture and interpretation.
The festival also gives space to young illustrators from the Artediez School, which organize ongoing mini-workshops on collage, folding and design Open to all types of audiences. These are activities designed for those who come without a clear idea of what to do and discover, almost by chance, that they can build small stories with paper, scissors and glue.
In addition, Abrapalabra incorporates a series of experiences where words, music and film intertwineA literary festival with live music for the whole family, one a musical session designed for boys and girls or with a film series dedicated to contemporary Portuguese animation, which allows you to learn about other ways of telling stories through moving images.
In parallel, several have been planned live podcasts These sessions will be recorded with an audience and later distributed on digital platforms, thus expanding the festival's reach beyond those who can attend in person. These live recordings feature guest authors, reading facilitators, and specialists in children's and young adult literature, with conversations about How catalogs are built, what topics concern young readers, and how orality and digital media intersect today.
Participation of bookstores and meetings with authors in other spaces
During the days that the festival lasts, La Casa Encendida hosts a pop-up bookstore coordinated by El Corte InglésWhere you can find the titles of the participating authors and a carefully curated selection of children's and young adult worksIt's not just a point of sale, but also a place where events are held. meetings with authors, storytelling sessions and small workshopsbringing the books even closer to the attendees.
In this reading and shopping space, families can browse catalogs, ask for recommendations, and discover picture books, comics, young adult fiction and hybrid proposals that combine text and image. Some of the activities are aimed at regular readers, but others focus on those who They are starting to get hooked on readingwith simple dynamics that reduce barriers and fears.
The collaboration with El Corte Inglés also extends to the Ámbito Cultural room at the Castellana center, where a character creation workshop with the illustrator Helena BonastreTaking as a reference point his illustrated novel "Little Red Riding Hood in Manhattan"The author proposes for boys and girls between 10 and 12 years old invent your own characters, work on their traits, and think about how they would fit into different stories.To attend, prior registration is required, and the session combines technical explanations with moments of free drawing and personalized advice.
Taken together, these complementary activities reinforce the idea that The children's and young adult book ecosystem encompasses libraries, schools, publishers, cultural spaces, and also shops.Abrapalabra takes advantage of this network to multiply the meeting points between creators and readers, so that the festival is perceived in different corners of the city, not only in its headquarters.
At the close of this second edition, Madrid becomes for a few days a map full of Books, workshops, exhibitions and voices that coexist around childhood and youthAbrapalabra 2025 champions a literature that can be heard, seen, and touched, one that enters schools and prisons, neighborhood libraries and cultural center courtyards. The sky, myths, miniatures, and reading workshops serve as pretexts for discussing companionship, imagination, and care, reinforcing a simple yet powerful idea: When stories are shared, the territories we inhabit become a little more habitable for everyone..
