Praise for Adesiara

The acquisition of Edicions del Periscopi by Grup 62 has prompted much commentary on the state of the Catalan-language book publishing industry. Beyond likes and dislikes, it's clear that the most turbulent zones of the book atmosphere are the mesosphere and thermosphere, which are the areas through which medium-sized publishers should navigate. Higher up, in the exosphere, large groups include numerous Catalan-language publishers. Lower down, in the stratosphere, all kinds of independent publishers operate, combining ambition with a lean corporate structure. Closer to Earth lies the troposphere, populated by artisan publishers, who often have other jobs to support their passion.

One of the most unique tropospheric imprints is Adesiara, founded in 2007 by Jordi Raventós to publish works of world literature unavailable in Catalan, at a rate of a dozen titles a year and with rigor as its main motto. Two recent examples, from May: Els poemes by Catullus, translated by Jaume Juan Castelló, and El zoo de vidre by Tennessee Williams, translated by Jordi Vilaró Berdusan.

This week, Adesiara (in Catalan from time to time ) issued a notice announcing the withdrawal of the entire first edition of the novel Teresa or the Love Life of a Woman by Carme Montoriol (1892–1966), with an introduction by Neus Real that perfectly describes this Barcelona-born writer, translator, and pianist. They are withdrawing it due to a typo on the spine and inside cover that they consider "inexcusable": "amososa" instead of "amorous ." They also announced that the second edition is already in print and will be available at the end of July, very soon.

Adesiara's books are an example of the best European publishing tradition

It's hard to imagine such a swift and forceful reaction from publishers in other areas of the book scene. This isn't the first time. Years ago, they also withdrew 600 copies of Ovid's The Art of Falling in Love , one of the best-selling books in their catalog, after discovering that a preposition appeared twice on page 14. The copies that had already been sold are now as coveted as the very few beloved copies of Montoriol's novel. Adesiara's books exemplify the best European publishing tradition.

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Titivillus is a legendary figure from medieval European tradition, considered a minor demon responsible for errors made by manuscript copyists. References to errors in the Oxford English Dictionary always mention the imp Titivillus in a footnote. Errare humanum est and lapsus calami are inherent to writing, but there are few cases like Adesiara who always correct them. Errare humanum est, sed corrigere nobilium est .

Buy Adesiara's books.