The hope of Francesc Torralba and the post-war Barcelona of David Uclés, Pla i Nadal awards

BarcelonaEvery January 6th, Barcelona's Hotel Palace dresses up to celebrate the first literary evening of the year. Organized by Destino, an imprint of Planeta, the event has for 82 years awarded the Nadal Prize to a novel written in Spanish and for 58 years awarded the Josep Pla Prize to a work of fiction, essay, or memoir written in Catalan, named after one of the publishing house's most distinguished authors. Eclecticism has marked the jury's decisions over the last decade, which has recognized established novelists like Maria Barbal (2021), championed authors such as Laia Aguilar (2020), Gemma Aguilar (2023), and Jaume Clotet (2024), and recommended Good morning, it's eight o'clock!, by Antoni Bassas (2018), and has even awarded, with a keen commercial sense, the essay by the biologist and professor of genetics David Bueno The art of being human (2025)This year, the jury for the award, made up of Montse Barderi, David Bueno, Jaume Clotet, Manuel Forcano and the editor Glòria Gasch, has chosen, from among the 42 works submitted, the one that had the provisional title The fight against disenchantment, signed by Regina Climacus. Once they opened the envelope, they discovered that behind this female pseudonym hid a man: the philosopher, theologian, and historian Francesc Torralba (Barcelona, ​​1967).

Destino will publish the winning essay of the 10,000 euros by Josep Pla, Anatomy of HopeOn February 4th, Torralba proposes, in the words of the publisher, "an essential map for navigating times of uncertainty." Based on three pillars—philosophy, literature, and human experience—the author explores the mechanisms that sustain the spirit when all seems lost. In the book, Torralba asks, "How can we revive meaning, how are horizons built, and why do we need that unwavering confidence that keeps us standing despite everything?" "My discourse on hope is countercultural, because when we talk about the future, we usually do so in dystopian or apocalyptic terms," the author stated during the award ceremony. "In the book, I try to propose a different approach than the more common ones, and I wanted to do so with intellectual foundations. For me, it has been quite a challenge."

The pain of losing a child

In 2023, Torralba personally suffered a major life setback, the loss of a son in a mountain accident, which he reflected on in There are no words. (Ara Llibres, 2024) and in The word that sustains me (Now Books, 2025). "The death of a loved one makes you more humble, because you realize your limitations, your powerlessness, the smallness of the human condition in the cosmos," he said shortly after publishing There are no words.“We spend our lives planning, scheduling, but everything can fall apart in an instant. You realize that we are like volvas, very ephemeral, contingent beings.”

Francesc Torralba, Professor of Philosophy at Ramon Llull University, holds doctorates in philosophy, theology, pedagogy, and history. A scholar of thinkers such as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Freud, he debuted on Circles of Hell (Edicions 62), and since then her work has grown at an exemplary pace: she has dealt with topics such as care (Ethics of caring, Mapfre Medicine Foundation, 2001), dignity (What is human dignity?, Herder, 2004), spirituality (Jesus Christ 2.0: Christianity Here and Now, Portico, 2012) and morality (To distract the good from the handl, Labrador, 2013). Although he has not yet turned 60, he has published more than a hundred works, in which he brings thought closer to readers through two constants, rigor and entertainment.

The David Uclés phenomenon leaves Barcelona in darkness

While the Pla Prize jury opted for an author with a long and established career, the Nadal Prize jury made a very different choice. The Catalan pseudonym Oriol Arce, who had submitted the novel for the €30,000 prize, was chosen. Another summer day roarsAmong them was the young Andalusian author David Uclés (Úbeda, 1990), who has achieved one of the most resounding successes of recent years thanks to his third novel, The peninsula of empty housesSince Siruela published the novel in March 2024, word of mouth among readers, the author's charisma, and the awarding of several prizes for published work have allowed it to surpass 200,000 copies sold. Furthermore, the work, which reimagines the violence, crimes, and envy of the Civil War, but also the dreams and ideals, through the lens of magical realism, continues to top the list of best-selling fiction books.

Uclés hopes to repeat this success—or even surpass it—with The City of Dead LightsThe book has a risky premise: it begins when post-war Barcelona is suddenly plunged into darkness. The person responsible for this disaster is Carmen Laforet, author of Nothing and winner of the first Nadal Prize. A group of characters from different eras come together to bring the Catalan capital out of the darkness. In addition to Laforet herself, Ana María Matute, Antoni Gaudí, Freddie Mercury, Roberto Bolaño, Woody Allen, and Mercè Rodoreda appear. "From 2010 to 2020, I entered the competition every Christmas, and I never won. This summer I thought I would try again, and the result has been different," he recalled on Tuesday. "And with a novel I came up with for the Montserrat Roig grant. Since I received it, I spent half a year in Barcelona writing." Uclés wanted to express his gratitude to "three very important women, without whom this novel would not exist: Mercè Rodoreda, Montserrat Roig, and Carmen Laforet."

In the novel, the arts act as the conscience of society and awaken its emotions. "The light can only return when someone dares to imagine it," the author affirms. The City of Dead Lights It aims to be "a dreamlike love letter set in Barcelona." Readers will decide whether they allow themselves to fall in love once again with David Uclés's characters.