The magazine for the little ones is growing up

Barcelona"For me The Tatano It's a fun and magical memory from my childhood. I spent many family moments sharing recipes, crafts, imagination, reading, and lots of laughter," says Xavier, from Alella, who is now 23. "Roser has arrived." The Tatano"What a rush there was when I heard that phrase! There weren't enough hands to tear open the plastic wrapping of the magazine and start reading Pere Sense Miedo," recalls Roser Maria, 25, from Ferreries.The Tatano It connected me to the world of reading. My older brothers read the Strong Horse And I imitated them by reading. The Tatano",” says Martí, from Maçaners, who is 24 years old. The three of them tell their story in issue number 241 of the iconic magazine, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary on newsstands. And like them, a series of tataners Those who grew up with the stories of Pere Sense Miedo, Rita Pinyada, and Nono and Petunia, among many others, share how being readers during childhood shaped them and the fond memories they cherish.

The Tatano It appeared in January 1990, included in Strong Horse to respond to the wishes of the magazine's team at that time, who saw that reading Strong Horse "It was aimed at children from eight or nine years old and up, excluding their younger siblings. So they decided to create content designed and aimed at readers from four to eight years old," explains Núria Figueras, editor-in-chief and coordinator of the magazine. The TatanoIn its initial phase, it had eight pages and was published six times a year. From January 2006, it became a monthly magazine, although the pilot issue was released in November 2005 to introduce it to the public. "We far exceeded our expectations, because the magazine was very well received from the start, and we began publishing monthly with a solid base of subscribers," Figueras acknowledges. And in this way, as the publisher explains, a long-held dream of the publishing house was realized: to offer children in the early stages of learning to read a magazine that is "attractive and of the highest quality, both in terms of content and presentation."

Since then, The Tatano Each month, it offers content tailored to the interests and abilities of children aged four and up. It features stories, comics, and poems to help them discover the joy of reading; nature reports and articles to satisfy their curiosity; and games and activities to stimulate their creativity. "Our readers are generally supported by enthusiastic parents who actively encourage their adult readers through the magazine. Furthermore, they are at a very receptive age, and the fact that they don't yet have their own electronic devices makes it easy for our magazine to hold a prominent place in their leisure activities," says Figueras.

Also, remember that The Tatano It has had very stable content over these twenty years, which has allowed readers to form connections and become familiar with it over time. "We have the feeling that readers have made the magazine their own because something fantastic has happened: we have an incredible level of participation, and it has arisen spontaneously." Every month in The Tatano They ask their followers to send them drawings related to a specific theme, but in turn, readers also send them photos of themselves doing activities that they propose month after month in the magazine's pages, such as workshops and recipes. "This participation increased until we had to create its own section, which is The memory of the Tataners...to be able to include them in a space that has been growing in pages. And this is very beautiful and very rewarding, because you see that people like the magazine, that they have made it their own, that it has allowed for a community of readers to be behind it. The Tatano that they recommend things to each other and create a network at an age when they don't usually have one yet."

Changes in reading habits

Núria Figueras acknowledges that the reading habits of young people have certainly changed over time, especially since the reading age of Strong Horsebut not so much in the case ofThe Tatano"We remain firm in our commitment to providing content that accompanies them in these early reading experiences. Ours is not a magazine for learning to read, but one of its aims is for children to discover the pleasure of reading. That's why it's so important to maintain the publication of well-written texts in our pages, and, for example, if it's a nature report, in these terms. We don't want to thin out the texts or the content because, at the same time, we also want to promote reading and the use of our language."

Thus, celebrating twenty years is a great milestone for the magazine, as it confirms that The Tatano It has become one of the leading children's publications in Catalan. This is corroborated by the fact that in its first year it was awarded the prize for best new publication by the Association of Periodical Publications in Catalan (APPEC), and that currently, with an average circulation of 12,000 copies and more than 9,000 subscribers, it has become one of the most widely read magazines. "We don't just have subscribers here in Catalonia, where we have the largest readership, but all over the world. The magazine creates a link with the Catalan language and traditions here and connects with Catalan families living abroad for whatever reason. So, our international subscribers have also been growing," says the editor-in-chief.

A very special issue

To celebrate its birthday, issue number 241 is special and has a specific event that unites its contents: Jan de l'Os, one of the magazine's legendary characters, has blown out the candles on his cake so hard that he's left the pages a mess. "His uncontrollable snort has become a kind of hurricane-force wind that has swept through the magazine from cover to cover and has become its common thread." This snort has also brought new characters to the table. The TatanoThis is the case with Bru and his family. The new character is about to turn six and is the brother of a large, fun, and somewhat chaotic family, so laughter is sure to accompany readers as they read his adventures.

"This issue is very special, with more pages, with a central fold-out that's a huge gaming scene, one of the sections that fans like the most." tataners"And with a free poster featuring all the characters who will appear in the magazine from now on," Figueras explains. Readers can also participate in a birthday raffle with lots of prizes. (If you can no longer find this issue at the newsstand, you can subscribe to...)The Tatano or get in touch to get it.) In any case, besides some content renewal – in the previous issue the magazine already said goodbye to the character of Neus – the magazine will also have new sections that will appear throughout the year. And on the website of Strong Horse Young readers of both magazines will now find poems recited aloud to listen to, as well as printable coloring pages of the featured characters. This initiative follows the addition of audio stories to the website, launched with issue 150, allowing readers to listen to the stories published in the magazines. The Tatano

It's been twenty years, but the intention and desire is to add many more.The Tatano It's growing, but our readers will always be between four and eight years old. Therefore, we are very clear that we must continue adapting to their interests and never stray from them. We must also continue fostering their innate curiosity with content they enjoy and that promotes reading without watering down the language,” explains Figueras. In this sense, the magazine is launching a new section What does it mean?, in which he presents Catalan idioms and expressions in a humorous way. "If The Tatano "This is the first step towards them finding and learning this more genuine vocabulary; it will be an important milestone that we will have reached."