This dying Spanish town is turning to books to put it on the literary map
On a typical winter’s day in the village of Libros, in northeastern Spain, about the most-exciting thing that happens is the hourly ringing of the church bell, which startles flocks of pigeons living in the belfry.
“We have a lot of pigeons here,” said Libros’ mayor, 36-year-old Raúl Arana, adding, “Sadly, more pigeons than people.”
Today, Libros has a population of 60. But once upon a time, some 2,500 people lived here. The majority of residents worked on farms, or in the nearby sulphur mines, which closed in the 1950s. But like lots of villages in the Teruel region, most of the older population has died off over the years, while the young emigrated, said Arana, who is an electrician by trade.
“It’s tough because there’s still a tiny bit of life happening here in Libros,” Arana said. “But if new folks don’t come, in the end, this town will die.”
To attract newcomers, Arana thinks the key to the town’s salvation is in its name: Libros translates to “books,” and he wants to open the town’s first-ever library.
The library’s location has yet to be determined, but Arana has already started building its collection. A year ago in June, Arana made a plea for book donations on social media with the hashtag, “Libros para Libros,” or “Books for Books,” which went viral.
Since then, over 70,000 volumes — including novels, kids’ books, nonfiction and encyclopedias — have poured in from all over the world — from Argentina to Germany. Twelve boxes alone came in from Mexico.
At one point, Arana said, the postman was coming by so many times a day that they gave him a key to town hall. Books were piled up all over the building, to the point where Arana could barely reach his office. So, late last year, he worked with volunteers to move a bunch of the books to a warehouse. The rest went to a third location.
Adrian Soriano, 37, the town’s handyman, pointed to a big, red shipping container on the edge of town. It was filled to the ceiling with books.
Arana said that he paid $3,000 for the container, money the tiny town can’t spare. And this is where the success and euphoria of the online book drive meets the economic realities of a small village.
“Now, we just need the library itself,” Arana said. “The regional government likes the idea. But they say it will cost some $4 million to build it. We don’t have the money, but I am sure we’ll find it.”
Arana said that they’ll apply for funds from the European Union if need be. His idea is to combine the library with a hotel to pay the salary of a librarian.
“The library hotel will generate jobs. People need work, which is why they leave to begin with. If we can bring back just seven or eight families, well, they’d count as villagers.”
Someone, he said, needs to organize the collection. Arana said that he’s confident because there’s proof that literary tourism can work here.
For example, bestselling Spanish author Maribel Medina talked to Teruel TV about a project she runs called My Town Reads. It stages literary events in tiny villages, including Libros, inviting famous authors to visit, sign books and spend the night.
Libros has hosted four events with Medina’s help. Arana said that hundreds of people showed up each time.
“It seems that because of our little literary boom, folks are starting to fix up the houses here,” he said. “On weekends, more people are returning.”
It may be too early to judge, but at the end of one of the town’s steep, dead-end lanes, there are signs of renewal.
Libros native Santiago Perez, 81, who lives past a bunch of crumbling homes, pointed to a house with scaffolding around it.
“One of my boys has set out to fix up that one. He’s making a really nice home for himself.”
That’s just one person. But when a place is on the verge of disappearing, Arana said, each resident makes a difference.