When George Orwell (1903-1950) decides to travel to Catalonia in 1936 to fight as a militiaman in the Civil War and "kill fascists", he does not go alone. He had only been married for a few months to Eileen O'Shaughnessy, a brilliant 30-year-old woman who surpassed him in many educational aspects. While Eric Blair, the real name of the young English writer, had no more than secondary education at Eton, she had accumulated the background of having studied literature at Oxford and a postgraduate degree in psychology in London. They will have an unusual "honeymoon": while Orwell is on the Aragon front, Eileen will work in Barcelona receiving British militiamen and will be the first to realize the seriousness of the internal conflict that will lead to the May Events.

Raoul Peck (Port-au-Prince, 1953) was Minister of Culture in Haiti (from 1996 to 1997) before becoming a filmmaker, but his political vision of the world never leaves him: Orwell 2+2=5, Premiering this Friday, this impressive documentary transforms George Orwell's thinking into a powerful analytical tool for understanding our times. It's not just about highlighting the prophetic dimension of the author of 1984 and The Rebellion of the Animalsbut to delve deeper into the lucidity of a work that is more relevant than ever.

A general consensus is emerging that genocide is being committed in Gaza. Okay. And a month ago, what was it? Because we've been denouncing the atrocities and excesses committed by Israel in this conflict for months. What happens when the classification of the thing is elevated to a new terminology? Well, the effect is twofold: on the one hand, it automatically garners more sympathy from international public opinion (the famous battle of the story), and, on the other, it enters a different legal classification that has aggravated penal effects. If Russia were committing genocide in Ukraine, the demonstrations against Putin would undoubtedly have rekindled throughout Europe (instead of this shameful paralysis). At first, Hitler also limited himself to invasions, when the Holocaust was not yet known (or reported): you start by invading territories, or in other words, not respecting the rights of peoples, and you end up not respecting life. Genocide is a change of screen. A change of size. What's more, if you say it is, you automatically seem pro-Palestinian; if you say it isn't, you're pro-Zionist. Labels label us.

Dozens of Union Jacks are decorating central London these days. They hang, for example, from the lampposts of The Mall, the avenue between Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square, the traditional epicenter of British monarchy celebrations: weddings, burials and coronations. They've been dusted off—a figure of speech, because any baggage or state visit is used to show them off—since the last major event took place just two years ago: the ride in the golden carriage of Charles III and Camila, to commemorate the enthronement of Elizabeth II's eternal crown prince.

The writer George Orwell hated porrón, probably olive oil as well, and he deeply missed tea, milk, chocolate, sugar, and bread. He also missed tobacco. These last were the elements in short supply during the Civil War, and especially in Catalonia during his time there, which was very short and intense: between December 26, 1936, and June 23, 1937, the day he had to flee Barcelona on a train or risk being arrested.

Literature can also be a refuge, especially in turbulent times. We saw this with the recovery of The plague ofAlbert Camus during the pandemic or a handful of dystopian novels during Donald Trump's first term. Once the orange plutocrat has returned to the White House, it is not surprising that, with good judgment, Edicions de 1984 – created that same year and named in homage to the eponymous novel by the English author – has wanted to expand its catalog of George Orwell (Motihari, 1903 - London, 1950) –where we already found Days in Burma (2011)— with a selection of pieces written between 1931 and 1948. The personal and, therefore, debatable selection—chosen, translated and contextualized by Pau Dito Tubau—brings together texts of diverse length, origin and interest, in which literature—whether that of third parties through reviews—is the .