Madrid Book Fair 2025

The iconic Retiro Park and its Paseo de Coches was the venue that hosted the Madrid Book Fair for 17 days. According to data provided by the exhibitors, this celebration of books generated a turnover of €10,140,955, with over 595,000 copies sold, covering around 170,000 different titles. It has established itself as one of the largest showcases for Spanish-language books worldwide.

In this 84th edition, New York was the guest city, conceived as a literary and cultural city in motion that also writes in Spanish. The chosen slogan, #NuevaYorkSeEscribeEnEspañol (“New York Is Written in Spanish”), reflected the aim of highlighting a city that is also thought about, read, and imagined in Spanish.

Writers such as María Negroni, Juan Gabriel Vásquez, Gabriela Cabezón Cámara, Javier Cercas, Pierre Lemaitre, Javier Sierra, Vivian Gornick, Marta Sanz, Rebecca Solnit, Junot Díaz, Rosa Montero, David Uclés, Catherine Lacey, Enrique Vila-Matas, Ray Loriga, Teju Cole, Lucy Sante, Katie Kitamura, and Claudia Piñeiro, among many others, met with their readers. More than 7,200 book signing sessions were held.

Pavilions

Among the new spaces at FLMadrid25, the Ibero-American Pavilion stood out. It was promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, and hosted more than 70 activities focused on language, migration, and identity. The Pavilion also provided visibility to the growing Latin American publishing ecosystem now present in Madrid.

Meanwhile, the Europe Pavilion commemorated the 40th anniversary of Spain’s accession to the European Communities, signed on 12 June 1985. Through talks, discussions and outreach activities, the programme looked back on the impact this integration has had on Spain’s economy, politics, society, and culture.

Young and School Audiences

Of particular note was the strong presence of children and young people at the Fair, both through school visits and their enthusiastic participation in activities at the Children's Pavilion and in signing events with authors of children’s and young adult literature.

Tributes

This year’s tributes were dedicated to Carmen Martín Gaite, Ana María Matute, Federico García Lorca, Nora Ephron, Mario Vargas Llosa, and Paul Auster.

Solidarity Challenge

Marco Chicot, author of The Assassination of Aristotle, signed books every single day of the Fair, from the opening until the closing, to support people with disabilities. He donated €1 for every book signed to foundations supporting people with disabilities. This initiative marks a significant step in Chicot’s ongoing commitment to social causes. Since 2009, when his first daughter Lucía was born with Down’s syndrome, he decided to devote several years to securing her future through literature. A member of Mensa, Chicot has always donated 10% of his book profits to charity. This year, his contributions exceeded €1,000.

Looking Ahead to 2026

Humour will be the central theme of the 85th edition of the Madrid Book Fair, to remind us that beyond the solemnity of the written word, there is always room for laughter and joy. It will take place from 29 May to 14 June 2026.

At the presentation event, comedian Joaquín Reyes remarked:
“It was about time we dedicated an edition to humour. It’s often seen as something frivolous, as though it can’t tell moving stories. But there are many kinds of humour, many forms of comedy, and satire is a genre that allows stories to transcend. It may seem that humour lessens things, but that’s not the case.”