The Covid-19 pandemic causes the cancellation of the April 23 festivities for health reasons, although there have been modifications to this activity in the past. April 23 has been Book Day and the Day of the Rose since 1931.

Year after year, the epicenter of this celebration has been in Barcelona, coinciding with Saint Jordi, which is the same day to commemorate the deaths of Miguel Cervantes and William Shakespeare.  The stay-at-home order to avoid the spread of the Corona virus has resulted in a postponement of the holiday by the Camara del Libro de Cataluña to July 23.  Though unusual, this is not the first time it happens:  The calendar has been altered eight times before.

The first time the Dia del Libro did not take place on April 23 was in 1933, explains Carmen Polo, journalist and cultural promoter, in her book “San Jordi. Libros y Rosas” (Sain Jordi. Books and Roses), Viena Edicions.  The reason was not as drastic as a pandemic:  Saint Jordi fell that year on a Sunday, and because it was a weekend, bookstores could not open.  Therefore the date was moved to Saturday, April 22.  Polo explains in her book the eight reasons prior to the pandemic in which this very important celebration was moved to alternate dates. 

Her book, illustrated with photographs from Ricard Lobo, is a history of the holiday since its beginnings between 1926 and 1930, when it was celebrated on October 7.  The holiday went from October to April, as explained by Lobo, because spring had better weather and because during the first weeks of fall, publishers were concentrating on the sale of textbooks.

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