Founded in 1964, Alfaguara has supported Spanish and Latin American literature, building a two-way street for published works on either side of the Atlantic, while the prize has subsequently established itself as a benchmark for quality literary awards given to unpublished work written in Spanish. Its prestige throughout the Spanish-speaking world secures the winning works international distribution, reaching over 400 million Spanish-speakers.

The success of the Alfaguara Prize has spread far beyond the borders of Spain, as evidenced by the fact that all the winning works have been translated into other languages. El ruido de las cosas al caer, by Juan Gabriel Vasquez, has been sold to publishers important such as Bloomsbury in the United Kingdom, Riverhead in the United States, Seuil in France and Ponte alle Grazie in Italy, Read the story here.