Where Are the books?

by Aída Bardales -- Críticas, 8/15/2007

The rumor has been buzzing for a while, but it was finally reported by a local paper, the Daily News, last month: our Librería Lectorum may soon be closing its doors. In a city where the Spanish-speaking population is growing daily, the threatened closure of one of only two Spanish-language bookstores prompted me to ask, Where are the Spanish-language books? Bookstores abound in New York City, but for me—and I suspect for most of the Spanish speakers here—finding a good collection of works in Spanish is surprisingly difficult.

I recently visited a branch of a chain bookstore and spent 20 minutes trying to find the Spanish-language section on my own. I finally gave up and asked one of the sales associates, who was rather baffled by the question and asked me to clarify if I was trying to learn Spanish or wanted history books. After patiently explaining what I meant by "Where are your Spanish-language books?" he pointed to the far corner of the first floor and told me I'd see them there. I must have walked by that shelf five times before I finally noticed the small sign that whispered, "Spanish." And there, on one side of the bookshelf and thrown together in what originally must have been alphabetical order, were all the books in Spanish the store had, some 80 titles in all—along with guides to learning Spanish and English-language travel guides for Latin America.

This and worse (some had no Spanish-language books) happened to me again at several popular independent bookstores throughout the city, and at other branches of popular big chain stores in other boroughs. Each time, I was baffled and frustrated. I can't help it; it makes no sense to me. Why is it that despite all the Spanish-language books that make it to the United States, many bookstores can't manage to even shelve them by category? Fiction. Nonfiction. Or even: Reference. Self-Help. This impossible situation must deter buyers.

Yes, I did find the most recent edition of Cien años de soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude) and other classics, as well as some new releases that we've reviewed in Críticas. But why is it that only the most popular or recently published works are on the shelves? Why can I easily find a copy of Paul Auster's books in English in every bookstore, but I only find it one out of six times in Spanish? Why are there several versions of García Márquez's classic work available (in Spanish) in most bookstores that carry Spanish-language works but not Elena Poniatowska's De noche vienes ("You Come By Night") or Reinaldo Arena's Antes que anochezca (Before Nightfall)?

One thing is clear: we can change this. One possible solution to help booksellers categorize these works (which, perhaps, they can't read themselves because they don't know Spanish) by categorizing them before they make it to the bookstores. Some of the Spanish-language books published here in the United States already have a subject category on the back cover or inside flap, much in the tradition of U.S. publishing in general. Book distributors or foreign publishers could add a small sticker to imported titles or provide additional material upon delivery to help booksellers figure out where to place them within the Spanish-language section so that it is as inviting to shoppers as the rest of the shelves in the store.

Another idea is to urge booksellers to use more obvious signage and even put up a sign on the front door letting people walking by that "Libros en español" are sold there. More than once, someone riding the train with me has asked where I bought the Spanish-language book I'm reading. If readers aren't aware that they can find books in Spanish at a local bookstore, they'll never drop in, the books won't sell, booksellers will argue that books in Spanish don't sell, and the chicken and egg conundrum will continue.  

This situation has existed for years and it's time to correct it. If our goal is to promote reading in general and Spanish-language literature in particular, then we have to make it easier for readers to find the books.

I want to hear from booksellers across the country that successfully cater to Spanish-language readers. What are you doing to ensure that you stock not just popular and mainstream titles and translations of U.S. best sellers, but also the literary jewels of times past, as well works by authors presently succeeding in Latin America and Spain?

And I encourage the rest of you to use Hispanic Heritage Month as an opportunity to attract more Spanish speakers into your bookstores and invite them to tell you what books they'd like to see on those bookshelves.