Samanta Schweblin Wins Inaugural €1 Million Aena Prize for Spanish-American Narrative

Argentinian writer Samanta Schweblin has become the laureate of the first-ever Aena de Narrativa Hispanoamericana Prize, receiving an award of one million euros. The winner was announced during a gala ceremony at the Maritime Museum of Barcelona.

The prize is awarded for the best book written in Spanish and published in 2025. Schweblin secured the honour for her work El buen mal ("The Good Evil"), surpassing other finalists, including Ahora y en la hora ("Now and in the Hour") by Héctor Abad Faciolince, Marciano ("Martian") by Nona Fernández, Los ilusionistas ("The Illusionists") by Marcos Giralt Torrente, and Canon de cámara obscura ("Darkroom Canon") by Enrique Vila-Matas.

Schweblin's book is a collection of five short stories unified by topics of loneliness and the complex relationships between parents and children. The narrative begins with a mother throwing herself into a lake with an anvil tied to her body; after a failed suicide attempt, she returns home to prepare dinner. The author notes that her stories centre on a single question: whether an individual, with their own desires, is capable of resisting external circumstances and societal expectations.

During the ceremony, Schweblin admitted she was shocked by the jury's choice, as major prizes are rarely awarded to short story collections, typically favouring novels.

The award caused a significant stir in literary circles even before the winner was announced, both due to the substantial cash prize and the fact that its founder is Aena, the company that manages Spain's airports.

During the award presentation, Aena President Maurici Lucena referenced the words of Nobel laureate Milton Friedman, who argued that the sole purpose of such a prize is profit. Lucena disagreed, noting that "patronage is a normal phenomenon for private companies, which do not necessarily have to be related to the cultural activities they generously fund."