El Tres Cantos International Festival of Children's and Young Adult Literature (FestiLIJ3C) The ninth edition of the event concluded with massive support from the public and the book industry. For four intense days, the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center was transformed into a major meeting point for reading, creative writing, and illustration aimed at children and young people.
Between February 5 and 8, the competition registered almost 4.000 visitors and around 3.000 registrations in the various activities proposed, which confirms the consolidation of the festival as one of the unmissable events of cultural calendar in SpainThe combination of family-friendly programming, top-level authors, and active reader participation has reinforced its role as a national benchmark in children's and young adult literature.
Organized by the Serendipias bookstore in Tres Cantos, in close collaboration with the Department of Culture of the Tres Cantos City CouncilThe FestiLIJ3C has offered nearly a hundred activities designed for all audiences. More than 70 authors and illustratorsBoth national and international figures have visited the halls of the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center, sharing their books, their creative process, and their professional experience with readers of all ages.
The public response has been especially significant: the festival has managed to bring together families, reading mediators, teachers and young readers in the same space, reinforcing the intergenerational nature of the event. Many of the sessions were fully booked, demonstrating the growing interest in reading and creative writing activities in the municipality.
According to data released by the organization, around 90% of visitors come from Tres CantosThis highlights the project's strong local roots. At the same time, visitors have been recorded arriving from other parts of Spain, such as The Canary Islands, Extremadura, Asturias, or CataloniaThis shows that the festival now transcends the municipal level and is projected on a national scale.
A program to experience books from all angles
The bulk of the programming for the ninth edition of FestiLIJ3C has been structured around almost a hundred proposals Different activities, designed to promote reading not only as an individual habit, but as a shared activity experienced in community. Most of the activities were concentrated at the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center, with full capacity in numerous sessions and a very active participation of children, teenagers and adults.
Among the most in-demand activities have been the storytellers and baby storytellersdesigned to introduce young children to the world of stories, as well as the Creative workshops and illustration, in which participants have been able to experiment with writing, drawing, and graphic storytelling. The following have also played an important role: talks aimed at families and teachers, focused on promoting reading and the role of mediators.
The program has been completed with meetings with authors, signing sessions, performing arts activities and innovative proposals such as the literary escape roomswhich have offered a playful way to approach stories and characters. In parallel, they have developed live radio programs linked to the competition, with the participation of creators and young readers, thus reinforcing the educational dimension of the festival.
According to the organization, the following have been counted 81 activities distributed between the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center and various educational spaces. Of these, more than sixty were held at the festival's headquarters, reaching an attendance of more than 3.200 people only in this venue. The rest took place in local schools, where the authors traveled to maintain direct contact with the students.
In total, around 600 students from six educational centers The residents of Tres Cantos have received visits from writers and illustrators, who have participated in talks, workshops and classroom activitiesThese morning activities have allowed the books read in class to connect with the people who write and illustrate them, reinforcing the link between school reading and literary experience.
Pinocchio as a common thread and continuous reading
One of the thematic focuses of this edition has been the classic work "The Adventures of Pinocchio" by Carlo CollodiThe festival has resumed its traditional format. continuous reading of a great classic, open to all attendees who wished to join, from Friday afternoon until Sunday at noon.
The reading of Pinocchio has continued uninterrupted thanks to the collective participation of children, youth and adultswho took turns giving voice to the text. The final moment of this activity was led by the writer Ricardo Gomez, who was in charge of reading the final passages of the work to the public, in a symbolic gesture that connected literary tradition with contemporary creation.
The universe of Pinocchio has also been present in the graphic image of the festivalThe poster for this ninth edition was created by the Argentinian illustrator Eugenia ÁbalosThe artist created the piece using watercolors and colored pencils. The illustration stands out for its soft textures and vibrant tones, and combines characters from the story of Pinocchio with emblematic elements of Tres Cantos, such as the Water Towerthus reinforcing the visual identity of the competition.
In addition to continuous reading, Collodi's classic has inspired specific activities around its imagery, from meetings with comic book authors who have reinterpreted the myth to sessions dedicated to exploring contemporary adaptations and readings of Pinocchio for new audiences. In this way, the festival has proposed a dialogue between tradition and new ways of storytelling.
The presence of the Blue Fairy, Pinocchio himself, and other characters linked to the story has also been traced in part of the selection of award-winning works in the translated comics category, where the title has been distinguished. "Azul, the fairy from Pinocchio", reinforcing the symbolic weight that the classic has had in this edition of the festival.
Community participation and national projection
Attendance data confirms that The local audience continues to be the driving force behind FestiLIJ3CAccording to figures from the organization, around 90% of attendees reside in Tres Cantos, which demonstrates the high level of involvement of residents with the municipality's cultural offerings and with this festival in particular.
At the same time, the presence of visitors from other autonomous communities such as Canary Islands, Extremadura, Asturias and Catalonia This shows that the event has been expanding its reach. Families, book professionals, and reading promoters travel to the Madrid municipality to participate in the activities, attend the awards ceremony, and learn firsthand about the latest developments in children's and young adult literature.
The figure of 3.800 to 4.000 people recorded throughout the four days of programming places the festival as one of the main cultural events of the municipality and a benchmark for similar initiatives in Spain. This is further enhanced by the participation of 32 volunteers, who have collaborated in coordination tasks, accompanying authors, access control and logistical support.
The assessment from local institutions has been positive. The mayor of Tres Cantos, Jesús Moreno, he emphasized in the presentation of the event that the festival's appeal lies in its ability to transform the city into a space for meeting, creativity and discoveryFor her part, the Councillor for Culture, Elisa Lidia Miguel, has stressed the importance of maintaining a stable supply of children's and young adult literature so that culture accompanies young people throughout their lives.
The head of the cultural department emphasized that the festival has already become a first-rate cultural project within the national landscape, thanks to intense public-private collaboration and joint work between the Serendipias bookstore, the City Council and the educational communityIn his words, the involvement of authors, families and professionals demonstrates that literature "is not only read, but also lived," and that the success of FestiLIJ3C is "for everyone and by everyone."
More than 70 authors and a strong international representation
The professional component of the event has been especially visible in the presence of more than 70 authors and illustratorswith representation from several European and Latin American countries. Among the international guests were names such as the Italian illustrator Elena Triolo, the British authors Abi Elphinstone y Steve Smallmanor the Italian writer Giuseppe Festa, among others.
Alongside them, numerous creators from across the country have participated, responsible for some of the most outstanding works in children's and young adult literature of recent years. Among the names present are: Eva Clemente, Diego Arboleda, María Menéndez-Ponte, Lola Núñez, Óscar Rull, Sara Nicolás, Silvina Eduardo, Jesús Burgoa, Ana Punset, Bárbara Fernández, Pablo C. Reyna, Cristina Villar, Gracia Iglesias, Margarita del Mazo, José Carlos Andrés, Santiago García-Clairac, Javier Fonseca or Javier Fernández Jiménez, Among many others.
These authors have not only participated in book signings, but also in meetings, workshops and dialogue tables where they have discussed the current challenges of reading among children and young people, the role of illustration in picture books, and the possibilities of young adult literature to address complex issues in an accessible way.
Meanwhile, some of them have starred in visits to educational centers in the municipality on Thursday and Friday mornings. In these sessions, students have been able to talk about the books they have read and ask direct questions to those who have written or illustrated them, thus reinforcing reading motivation and the perception of closeness with the figure of the author.
The festival's management, headed by Elena Martínez, has highlighted that the families of Tres Cantos have embraced the FestiLIJ3C as a a highly anticipated event every yearAnd that this public loyalty has been key to the event's growth in the number of guests, the quality of its programming, and its recognition within the publishing sector.
The Torre del Agua Awards: the festival's recognition of literary creation
One of the highlights of the 9th edition has been the Torre del Agua Awards GalaThe awards ceremony, held at the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center theater, recognizes some of the most important publications in the sector each year in different categories. These awards, considered by many to be the "Goya" of children's and young adult literature, are held annually at the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center theater.
The event was hosted by Javier Fernández Jiménez, director of the radio project "What a Castle!", and featured the active participation of children and teenagers from the Tres Cantos reading clubsThey, along with the festival director, Elena Martínezand the mayor of Tres Cantos, Jesús MorenoThey were in charge of presenting the awards to the winners in the fourteen categories recognized by the competition.
El Honorary Water Tower Award The dedication to children's and young adult literature fell to the writer Ricardo Gomez (Segovia, 1954), an author who, after a long career as a mathematics teacher, decided to dedicate himself fully to writing. His career includes accolades such as the Steam Boat Award, the Cervantes Boy, the Wide angle, the Alandar, the Ignacio Aldecoa, in addition to selections on the list White Ravens and international awards such as Best Illustrated Album in Brazil.
In the category of Spanish picture book the award went to "Flying", Ana Marqués, with illustrations by Natascha RosenbergPublished by Tutifruti Editorial. In illustrated translation album The award went to "Tuctuc and Rucutuc and the lower-than-normal cloud", Kes Gray and Chris Jevons, translated by Isabel Rosell Bellera and published by La Galera.
In the section addressed to standalone readersThe award in Spanish went to "Inés and 3Pies", Eva ClementePublished by Emonautas. The translation prize was awarded to "An upside-down forest", Giuseppe Festa, with translation by Teresa Aguilar Sánchez and published by Duomo, while the category of Spanish-speaking readers The work stood out "A bookstore in the woods", Diego Arboleda, published by Anaya.
In the section readers in translationThe winning title was "Emma Spark", Abi Elphinstone, translated by Marc Figueras and published by Gribaudo. Already in young adult literature, the prize to stand-alone young adult novel in Spanish corresponded to "Royal Blood", Marina Tena, published by Loqueleo, while in self-contained translation for young adults The recognized work was "Re-haunted", Lucy Jane Wood, with translation by Iris Mogollón González y Cristina ZuilPublished by Maeva Red.
In the category of young adult saga in Spanish the award went to "Newbies of the heart", Cristina Prieto, from Fandom Publishing. In young adult translation sagaThe award-winning title was "Dawn in the Harvest", Suzanne Collins, translated by Pilar Ramirez Tello and published by Molino, belonging to the Hunger Games universe.
The section of Spanish comic distinguished the adaptation of "Little Red Riding Hood in Manhattan", original work of Carmen Martin Gaite adapted by Helena Bonastre y Catalina GonzalezPublished by Siruela. In translation comic Two titles were recognized: "Azul, the fairy from Pinocchio", Elena Triolo, translated by Marta Tutone and edited by Liana; and "The Book of Ayla", Séverine de la Croix y Violette Graboski, with translation by Regina López Muñoz and published by Errata Naturae.
The category of knowledge the work was awarded "Medidamania", Kiko SanchezPublished by Juventud, the book stands out for introducing measurement and mathematical concepts to children in an accessible and playful way. The entire list of awards reinforces the festival's objective. to make visible the diversity of genres, formats and voices that coexist in literature aimed at children and young people.
A collaborative project that looks to future editions
Throughout this ninth edition, FestiLIJ3C has demonstrated that the combination of public institutions, independent bookstores, educational centers, authors and families This can lead to a solid, sustainable cultural project with room for growth. The absence of cancellations in the program, despite travel difficulties for some guests, has been achieved thanks to the flexibility of authors and organizationwho have sought alternatives to maintain the planned program.
The role of 32 volunteers The support provided by those who have assisted with daily logistics has also been a determining factor. Their work has facilitated access management, attendee assistance, and coordination between rooms, allowing activities to run smoothly, even during peak times.
The festival management particularly emphasizes the creativity demonstrated by the children in illustration and writing workshops, as well as the involvement of teenagers in reading clubs and participatory activities. All of this has contributed to reinforcing the idea that young readers are not mere spectators, but active protagonists of the project.
With nine editions already behind it, the Tres Cantos International Children's and Young Adult Literature Festival is establishing itself as benchmark in Spain within its specialty. The combination of a broad program, a selection of top-level authors, a track record that focuses on editorial quality, and a solid base of local and inter-regional audiences paints a favorable scenario for continued growth in future editions.
The latest edition of FestiLIJ3C has seen high attendance figures, a very diverse program, and an awards list that spans from picture books to comics and educational publications, consolidating the Tres Cantos festival as a key event for understanding how the literary landscape is being shaped today. Children's and young adult literature in Spain and Europe, and highlighting the role of Tres Cantos as a meeting point for readers, creators and reading mediators.