The city of Vic will host the first edition of Canalla! from October 23 to 25, a festival of children's and youth literature featuring 60 activities in 11 venues, free entry, and participation from authors such as Susanne Strasser and Marta Altés.
Vic is preparing to host a new significant cultural event. The city will debut the first edition of Canalla! next October, a festival dedicated to children's and youth literature that will take place from October 23 to 25. The initiative, driven by the local cultural fabric, aims to create a shared space for discovery, creation, and participation around reading for the youngest.
The festival will be structured around five main axes: Fair, Programming, Education, Exhibitions, and Pro. The programme will include 60 activities spread across 11 venues in the city, from the Rambla del Bisbat to various bookstores and cultural facilities. General admission will be free, although some activities will have limited capacity and require prior registration, and two of them will be paid.
Canalla! is born with the intention of taking advantage of Vic's rich cultural and literary ecosystem. With over 50,000 inhabitants and 12 bookstores—one of which has specialised in children's and youth literature for more than a decade—the city ranks among the populations with the highest density of bookstores in Catalonia and Europe. The Catalan average is 2.6 bookstores for every 50,000 inhabitants, a figure much lower than that of Vic.
The city also boasts the Pilarin Bayés Library, a reference facility; the Escola d'Art de Vic (EARTVic) and the Centre d'Arts Contemporànies (ACVic), linked to artistic creation; and a long literary and illustrative tradition with figures such as Pilarin Bayés. This ecosystem is the foundation of the festival, which seeks to strengthen the relationship between reading, education, creation, and the city.
The festival's guiding thread is the concept of 'la canalla', an invitation to reflect on what it means to be a child today and the role of reading, play, creativity, and art in their growth. The festival is aimed at children and young people of all ages, with specific proposals from early childhood to adolescence, and also engages families, the educational community, and professionals in literature and illustration.
The inauguration will take place on Friday, October 23, with a speech by writer Meritxell Martí and illustrator Xavier Salomó, and the show 'Ulissa', by Genovesa Narratives Teatrals, a contemporary re-reading of the Odyssey. On Saturday and Sunday, the programme will extend across various venues in the city with performances, storytelling, recitals, creative workshops, and meetings with writing and illustration professionals.
Among the notable names in this first edition are German author Susanne Strasser, Marta Altés, Maite Carranza, Miquel Desclot, Anna Font, Jaume Copons, Liliana Fortuny, Mercè Galí, Òscar Julve, Subi, Sherezade Bardají, and La Berta del Poblet, among others. The programme also reserves a specific space for young audiences, with literary conversations, writing workshops, horror stories, comic activities, and discussions about literary adaptations.
The commercial fair area, located on the ramblas dels Montcada and del Bisbat, will be one of the main meeting points. It will feature 23 stands dedicated to 21 exhibitors from the publishing sector, represented by 9 bookstores from Vic, 51 publishing houses, and 27 exhibitors from the illustration field in 10 exhibition stands. This format allows for a broad and diverse showcase of the current publishing landscape while also highlighting the role of specialised local commerce.
Visitors will be able to discover new releases and backlist titles, illustrated albums, comics, narrative, poetry, popular science, and magazines in Catalan for all age groups. Each stand will have its own identity, allowing visitors to delve into different publishing universes and converse with participating professionals.
The festival opens its doors on Friday, October 23, and Saturday, October 24, from 10 am to 8 pm, and on Sunday, October 25, from 10 am to 6 pm. The complete programme, detailed schedules, and registrations can be found on the website canalla.vic.cat. With the involvement of bookstores, educational centres, cultural facilities, and numerous entities from the sector, the festival is born as a collective initiative with a desire for continuity and projection throughout the country.
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