"The Price of an Ideal" by Kevin Legrá, Wins the 18th Málaga Novel Award

The mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre, together with the Councilor for Culture and Historical Heritage, Mariana Pineda; the director of Galaxia Gutenberg publishing house, Joan Tarrida; and the award-winning writer, Kevin A. Legrá Gámez, presented this Monday the work 'The Price of an Ideal,' winner of the XVIII Málaga Novel Prize. This literary award is endowed with 18,000 euros, in addition to the free publication of the work.

In this edition, 457 manuscripts were submitted, a 60.61 percent increase over 2023. Of the novels submitted, 15 were shortlisted, primarily from Spain, though submissions were also received from Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru, Cuba, the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, and Luxembourg. The jury was chaired by the Director General of Culture, Susana Martín, and included Luis Alberto de Cuenca, Antonio Soler, Alfredo Taján, María del Pilar Fernández, Ana Cabello, and María García.

The jury nominated the work by Kevin A. Legrá Gámez, appreciating that the novel "reflects the recent history of Cuba through its protagonist. Chronologically, it covers from the triumph of the Castro revolution to the Pope's visit to the island. The biography of this character is written in the pages of the events that have shaped the turbulent process of the Cuban regime, also from its novel approach: the ethical dilemma of combining revolution with religion. All this with a fluid, simple, and effective style, which turns this chronicle into a fascinating journey where the reader will discover not so well-known, but significant, aspects of Cuban history over the last sixty years," as stated in the jury's report.

This is the Winning Work

At the age of six, Rivero, born in 1942 in Guantánamo, arrives with his mother at his great-grandmother's house in Santiago de Cuba, where he spends his childhood to youth between school, his home on Santa Úrsula street, and Sunday mass. Meanwhile, on the island, the Rebel Army has overthrown dictator Batista, and in 1959, Fidel announces the triumph of the Revolution. Rivero is then seventeen years old and still unaware of what fate holds for him in this new Cuba. Young Rivero's plans are interrupted when he is sent to one of the Military Units to Aid Production (UMAP), the forced labor camps that, between 1965 and 1968, brought together dissident artists and intellectuals, homosexuals, and those of various religions in Cuba. From that moment, Rivero's biography will be marked by despair and impotence in the face of the hatred and suspicion of a repressive military system.

In 'The Price of an Ideal,' awarded the XVIII Málaga Novel Prize, the vicissitudes of the protagonists reflect the history of Cuba, from the early years of the Revolution to the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1998, from the perspective of a protagonist trying to reconcile his religious faith with the revolutionary effort. With a simple and fluid style, Legrá uses thorough research to tell the story of characters whose daily lives are inevitably marked by historical events and dictated by the slogans of the Cuban regime.

About the Author

The author became involved in the world of literature at an early age, standing out as a scriptwriter and announcer for the youth radio program 'Conquering the Future' during his high school years. It was in this context that his first stories emerged. In May 2020, he wrote 'The Witches of Boma,' a story based on legends from the Cuban countryside, which was later considered for adaptation to the theater by Ka-théâtre, a French company that presented several works in Santiago de Cuba between 2007 and 2011.

In December 2023, he published his first book, 'Tales in Verse,' a compilation of twenty-four poems that achieved sales in Spain, France, and the United States. He currently collaborates with the literary blog 'I read, therefore I am,' where he writes book reviews, shares advice on narrative techniques, and addresses topics of interest. Additionally, he publishes these reviews on his eponymous Instagram account, which has more than a thousand followers and an active community that supports him.

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