Cien Fuegos: a Latin American safe haven

Founded back in 2015, Miguel Ángel Petrecca has created a home for not only the Spanish language, but Latin American expatriates, in the French capital.

“Before it became a library, Cien Fuegos was an idea. An idea that roamed through the dreams of many and that emerged just like a rumor or a recurrent fantasy: a hispanic bookshop in Paris.”

When I first moved to Paris, I came with only two bags to my name – one filled with clothes and another filled with books in my mother tongue. After some months of living in Paris, I managed to read all of those books I brought back with me and the thirst for more settled in. I realized I could buy myself some books in French or even in English, thanks to popular bookstores that cater to an English-speaking audience such as Shakespeare and Company as well as Abbey Bookshop. These were all great alternatives, but when you are so far away from home, in a country where everything inevitably feels absolutely foreign and strange, all you wish to surround yourself with are things that remind you of where you come from when that homesick feeling settles in.

And so, I was a woman on a mission and my goal was to find Latin American literature. I scavenged through the little stands in the Seine, through the Abbey Bookshop (which surprisingly had some books in Spanish lying around) and even resorted to ordering books through Amazon. Reading Pablo Neruda on my kindle satisfied me for a while but I wanted something more; I wished I could hop on the metro and go to a bookstore where I could just ask for any book I wanted in Spanish and would be able to hold it in my hands. One night, after hours of reading an English translation of Cien Años de Soledad that I managed to get my hands on in Librairie Galignani, I called up a friend to express my frustration, my yearning for Latin American literature in its native language. My friend, who also lived in Paris and was far more knowledgeable about the city, looked at me with a confused stare and men- tioned this bookshop called Cien Fuegos. Suddenly, the fog lifted and I found what would be my place of literary refuge for the rest of my stay in France.

“Before it became a library, Cien Fuegos was an idea. An idea that roamed through the dreams of many and that emerged just like a rumor or a recurrent fantasy: a hispanic bookshop in Paris. Due to all the time one spent thinking and imagining it, the bookstore had almost become a reality, even before existing. As if it had appeared, suddenly, in some sheltered place in the city”, writes Miguel Ángel Petrecca, owner of the Hispanic bookshop Cien Fuegos. Currently located in 11 Rue Saint Blaise in the 20th arrondissement, Cien Fuegos has become a sort of haven for Spanish speakers who seek a taste of home, like myself, or simply people who are learning Spanish and wish to practice their skills. Cien Fuegos, although a relatively new bookshop, holds the history of past ‘hispano-americaine’ and ‘espagnole’ bookshops upon its shoulders as well as the heritage of a long-lasting relationship between Latin American expatriates and Paris. This is why Cien Fuegos has, since the beginning, decided that the main focus would be on actual Latin American writers and small publishing houses. Although the bookstore also sells classics of Hispanic literature, Cien Fuegos wishes to help upcoming writers exhibit their work. Petrecca is currently a Professor, translator and editor based in Paris.

Although Cien Fuegos is a pretty small local, the amount of people it has managed to reach is impressive. As I skimmed through the variety of titles nestled between the shelves of this cozy bookstore, I found myself talking with Petrecca about the impact this bookshop has had on the lives of other expatriates in Paris and how Cien Fuegos itself came to be. The topics of literary heritage and community inevitably and continuously popped up and so, I managed to learn more about literary movements that shaped Hispanic literature, about the importance of bookshops and of this one man’s mission to bring Spanish to the foreign. It’s as if a sort of link was forged, a bridge between two worlds. Petrecca made it clear that Latin America has since many decades ago had a sort of foothold in Paris and that by creating this safe space, this specialized library, he was able to honor and continue that tradition.

How did the idea of a bookstore that is specialized and focused on Latin American literature occur?

“When I arrived here in Paris, I wanted to create a sort of space that was also aligned to what I myself would like to find in a city that suddenly becomes your new home. Bookstores are a sort of symbol, something that in general brings people together. Actually, when I inaugurated Cien Fuegos, there were a multitude of people from different parts of the world who came just for this and I managed to meet people I had never even seen before. The concept of a Latin American bookstore generates something special inside of people.”

Paris has been a home for many Latin American writers in the past, and even in the present. Many came here seeking shelter from oppression and censorship. Do you see Cien Fuegos as a way to honor that heritage left by the past?

“Since the 19th or 20th century, there have always been bookstores that are specialized and that sell books of a specific language. Regarding Hispanic bookshops, they were a meeting place for those Latin American writers that came to Europe. Cien Fuegos is a place where we honor that memory from when a sort of community of great Latin American writers such as Fuentes, Cortazar, and many others gathered here in Paris and left a mark.”

Would you say that French culture (and/or literature) have impacted Latin American writers and their work?

“France has been this center for art and acceptance for a long while. I’m not sure if that is the case now but it definitely was for writers that were not completely free to create what they wanted to in their countries, especially if they came from a country that was under dictatorship.”

As an independent bookstore owner yourself, what is the future for small specialized bookshops? Is there any hope in a world where technology seems to have taken center stage?

“When, for example, the Kindle arrived, it was thought that it was something that had come to kill bookstores, to kill books. I think it’s the opposite. Books continue being the source and the digital is something supplementary. Society evolves and changes, and so do our habits. However, things have the power to reinvent themselves. Libraries are in constant motion and they are a symbol that won’t fade away as easily.”

It is clear that Cien Fuegos, even though it has had its fair share of trials and tribulations, is fighting to stay and make its mark as a voice for the Latin American community here in Paris. As is the case with other sociocultural events here in Paris that are mainly targeted for Hispanics such as the Day of the Dead for Mexicans or an Independence Day celebration for any other Latin American country whose celebrations are mainly organized by the embassy and restaurants, Cien Fuegos has the ability to join people together and give them a voice.