After a quiet debut on Friday, the 40th Rio Book Biennale saw plenty of queues and a lot of shouting during the event’s first weekend which runs until September 10. Much of this hysteria was due to the presence of international authors Julia Quinn, Holly Black and Cassandra Clare.
Quinn told Splash that he was pleased with the openness of the Brazilian public. On Saturday she took part in a dance with fans, and on Sunday she received an honor for selling more than three million books in the country.
We had this dance last night. It was crazy. People were screaming… I sent a video to my family and received lots of emojis. There were a lot of people there. They screamed. It was fun.
Julia Quinn
Audiovisual producer Maria Luísa, 23, traveled from Caxias do Sul (RS) to Rio de Janeiro to see the author of the “Bridgertons” saga. She was accompanied by her mother, Edivania Ramos, 52. “I didn’t sleep for two days because I was afraid,” the officer said.
“’The Secrets of Colin Bridgerton’ is my favorite book of all time. I missed a close relative’s graduation, I had to leave an 80 year old great aunt’s birthday early so I could catch the flight and arrive last night. Me “I stood in line from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., I got a bracelet for the panel, I sat in a good spot, I could see Julia up close, all that was missing was the autograph. “She’s very sweet,” said the young woman Squirt.
Maria Luísa, 23, from Rio Grande do Sul is a fan of Julia Quinn. Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL
But make no mistake: local authors also shared the spotlight with foreign authors over the weekend. On Sunday, Rafael Montes attracted a huge crowd to his podium. And there are independent authors looking for their own space and finding their way in the crowd of Riocentro pavilions.
Writer Dresa Guerra, 36, came up with the idea of drawing attention with the “Hug a National Author” sign. “I am an independent author. This sign appeared at my first Biennale in 2017 because I was worried no one would show up at my opening. People stop to read, hug me: it’s the ideal time to promote my book.” “It worked because at every event I go to I sell a lot of books,” said the artist Squirt.
She announced the work “The Book I Never Wrote,” which is about a writer who falls in love with a fan. “He is very focused on work. When he falls in love, he realizes that he has to live as long as we do. We don’t know if we have tomorrow,” he explained.
Dresa Guerra, 36, is the author of “The Book I Never Written” Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL
This pop weekend attracted a crowd of reading enthusiasts. At times it was difficult to move around the rooms and eat in the food court.
“Eating was a challenge, you had to be patient. After lunch, it was almost impossible to walk around the stands and read the summary of the book, as the stands, especially those of the most famous brands, “There were long queues. When you saw the stands you were reluctant to go there, sometimes you even gave up,” comments historian Lia Castanho, 26, who went to the Biennale with her mother, literacy teacher Andréa Castanho, 57.
Daughter and mother Lia and Andréa Castanho have been attending the Book Biennale in Rio for years. Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL
Cosplay
It was easy to find people in costumes in the Riocentro pavilions. Small queues formed to take photos with independent cosplayers or at the publishers’ booths. In one of them, people waited 30 minutes to guarantee registration next to the Harry Potter characters.
Mauricio Batalha, 26, from Maranhão based in Rio, decided to embody the character Ken. Chatting with Squirt, he said it took a week to customize the jacket, but it was worth it because the public’s feedback was positive: lots of requests for photos and “Hello, Barbie” as well as jokes. Some called him “Ken from Shopee.”
“I grew up watching ‘Barbie’ because of my younger sister. In the end, I was influenced by her and the universe of the cartoon. This nostalgia and engagement surrounding the film made me want to dress up as Ken. Everyone loves Ken, as amazing as it may seem… One or two people have joked about being “Ken from Shopee”, but it’s just in fun. I got compliments.”
Mauricio Batalha, 26, decided to embody the character Ken from the “Barbie” franchise. Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL
This Sunday there would also be a cosplay competition with the characters Cassandra Clare and Holly Black, in the presence of the authors. It took 24yearold medical student Natália Kishimoto 5:30 hours to look like Oriana from the book “The Cruel Prince.” She left Juiz de Fora (MG) just to enter the competition and get closer to the North American author.
I have been addicted to books since childhood because of the fantasy world. I met Holly Black in 2011 and I have always liked the world of fairies. The “Cruel Prince” trilogy combines everything I’ve always liked. I am autistic and my hyperfocus is my fantasy world.
Natalia Kishimoto
Natália Kishimoto, 24, portrayed the character of Holly Black. Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL
The student Pedro Afonso, 17, student, resident of Nilópolis, Baixada Fluminense, decided to dress up as Magnus Bane due to the influence of his mother, who works with books and likes the author Cassandra Clare.
“She always drags me to all the biennales. Magnus Bane comes from the Mortal Instruments saga, my mother’s favorite film. I like him too. I came because of his clothes and personality: painted nails and all purple. We have been staying in a hotel there since yesterday and we are leaving tomorrow.
Pedro Afonso, 17, embodies Cassandra Clare’s character. Image: Filipe Pavão/UOL