'Érase', an initiative on children's and young literature, in Spanish and with Christian values

I've been a big fan of fantasy and science fiction for many years. J.R.R. Tolkien is my favorite writer.

Eight reflections of the writer J.R.R. Tolkien in which he expressed his principles
'A media voz', a magnificent website about poetry that has managed to survive its author

The problem I've often encountered when buying books is that certain works are laced with a repellent ideology that I don't think is advisable for children and young people. Unfortunately, this is happening more and more frequently, which is why it's a good thing to see publishing projects emerging that offer guarantees to readers and families against attempts at ideological and historical manipulation.

This week I discovered a new Spanish publishing house that just started its journey: Editorial Érase. It's a project by Pedro Lara Astiaso and María Loreto Ríos. In February, El Debate published an article about this publishing house, highlighting that it is "an initiative that aims to bring the best children's and young adult literature with a Christian background to Spain and in Spanish, especially from the English-speaking world." Pedro adds: "Young adult literature, not just fantasy but fiction in general, in the English-speaking world, in the English-speaking language, with a Christian background, is much better than that published in Spain."

In March, Religión en Libertad published an interview with the founders of that publishing house. Amid references to Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, Pedro explained some of the publishing house's criteria: "We pay attention, of course, to the literary quality of the work, but also to its moral undertones. There are too many novels out there that blur or outright eliminate the reality of good and evil, that present vice as something desirable or even beneficial, or that act as mere vectors for transmitting current ideologies."

Likewise, Pedro added: "We are very careful not to contribute to the spread of historical lies. Much to our regret, we have had to discard some otherwise excellent works because they gave rise to some of the most ridiculous episodes of the black legend."

While browsing the publisher's website, there was one thing I noticed in particular: the design. Their book covers are true gems when it comes to design. I think the website itself is gorgeous, and their book covers are little works of art, created by Spanish illustrator Laurana Baeza. The publisher explains its vision in this regard as follows: "At Érase, we believe it is important to recover the artisanal vision of the trade. We take great care with the editing and binding so that the physical book is a faithful reflection of the story contained within its pages." With this, they have finally won me over as a reader. I have already bought two of their books; I'll let you know how they are.

If you're interested in their work, you can browse their catalog here and purchase their books through their website. In a world where people are reading less and less, the emergence of such a publishing house is something worth celebrating. My best wishes to their sponsors.