This week, we have started the presentations of our last publishing novelty Romanian wonderful tales, an anthology of stories gathered by Petre Ispirescu, selected, and translated by Mihai Iacob and with a prologue by Stelian Turlea.
Our bad company, Blanca Sanz has been in the first presentation and has written this text for you:
The Romanian old lady, who is the cover and gate of the book Romanian wonderful tales by Petre Ispirescu, brings in her eyes wisdom of what she has experienced and listened to, of what has been told and kept silent. The paintbrush of Roxana Irimia has not only portrayed the character but it has also printed an icon of the Romanian tradition: an old lady with a black scarf on a black background, white puffed, lace and embroidery in relief for the inherited bodice, face with wrinkles, lines of every story to be told and every one of the engravings that are brilliantly illustrated by Roxana.
In her generous presentation, we understand each illustration and, tale by tale, she evokes her childhood memories, her experiences, the traditions, her imagination, and the same stories that filled her childhood.
Her work is a gift as it is this written rescue of Petre’s tales. Libros de las Malas Compañías (Bad Companies Books) still focuses its work on the survival of the tales told and written. It is magic checking the universal and it is necessary for the survival of our identities.
Thank you, Roxana. Thanks, Ana.”
By Blanca Sanz
November 4th 2022, presentation in the Romanian Embassy in Madrid.
(From left to right: director of the Romanian cultural institute in Madrid, María Pop, editor of Libros de las Malas Compañías, Ana C. Herreros, illustrator of “Romanian wonderful tales”, Roxana Irimia, and Minister Counsellor of the Romanian Embassy in Madrid, Laviniu Enii)