‘Literary athletes’ join event at Casa Brasil

'Brazilian literature for today's world' was the topic of the last 'Jabuti writers and readers' meeting, which brought two journalists and writers to talk to audiences Casa Brasil: Miriam Leitão, winner of the 2012 Jabuti Award in the Non-Fiction category for her work 'Brazilian saga: a people's long struggle for its currency'; and Edney Silvestre, winner of the 2010 Jabuti in the Novel category with 'If I close my eyes now'.

During a talk that lasted nearly two hours, the writers spoke of their stories and feelings regarding their books, their devotion to the development process, and their relationship with other writers and the media. They also took questions from the audience at Casa Brasil's Warehouse 1 auditorium.

At the end, Miriam Leitão and Edney Silvestre signed a few copies of their books and took photographs with their readers. 'I think it was a great idea. I felt as like I was an athlete at an Olympic event. And a literary athlete, of an 'Olympic sport' that was launched here today', said writer Miriam Leitão. 'It is really good to participate in such an interesting event, with everyone so engaged', said Edney Silvestre.

Tourist guide André Lopes, who is spending his holidays in Rio, set one day aside just to visit Casa Brasil. Originally from Osório, on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul, André was very keen to thank the writers for sharing their stories. 'The possibility of attending this literary event was amazing. I wanted to understand what Casa Brasil would be doing about promoting Brazil, and when I heard about this talk, I decided to attend to learn a bit more about these journalists. It was a great win for me today', concluded André.

Organised by the Brazilian Book Chamber (CBL) in partnership with the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), the meeting had its first edition held at Casa Brasil.

About the Jabuti Award

This is the most traditional and prestigious literary award in Brazil, and is led by the Brazilian Book Chamber. Since 1959, the award is an important recognition by Brazil's intellectual community, meaning that winners have been accepted among a team of notables in national literature. In addition to promoting writers, the award highlights the quality of all the work involved in creating and producing a book.

Casa Brasil Team