Passa Porta and Fame Festival present an evening with Spanish author Alana S. Portero.
As part of the Fame Festival 2024, a performing arts festival that highlights the artistic work of women and gender minorities, we welcome Alana S. Portero, who, with Bad Habit, has delivered a noted and poignant debut.
Bad Habit
Alana S. Portero’s debut novel instantly placed her at the forefront of the Spanish literary scene and became a bestseller. In this coming-of-age novel, readers are introduced to a girl trapped in a boy’s body. She does her best to understand herself and the world she lives in. Ultimately, the lessons of several women she meets during this long process help her overcome the violence she faces at every step.
Portero_Alana_S (copyright Jaime Llamas y Bárbara Lara)
Madrid
Bad Habit was widely praised for the way the book portrays identity, gender and class in 1980s and 1990s Madrid. Portero manages to capture marginalized voices in a powerful poetic style. In a world where there seems to be no room for her, the main character embarks on a difficult and heartbreaking journey.
about the author
Alana S. Portero (b. 1978) is a versatile Spanish author and theatre director. She is a co-founder of the theatre company Striga and a passionate advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, with a particular focus on the experiences of trans women. She writes about culture, feminism, activism, diversity and inclusion.
about the moderator
Saskia De Coster (b. 1976) is the author of an idiosyncratic oeuvre. Her work has been translated into more than ten languages. Her novel Nachtouders (2019) was shortlisted for the Libris Literature Prize. In 2023, her novel Net echt was published.
International acclaim for Bad Habit
‘A moving story that reveals much about how torn such a trans girl can be.’
De Morgen
‘An important book about growing up in the wrong body, on the wrong side of town.’
De Standaard
‘An intimate story, delicate, disturbing, tender and raw at the same time.’
La Vanguardia
‘And undoubtedly, it is a tale of a city, taking its place in a rich lineage of Madrid novels by other Spanish authors, from Rosa Montero to Almudena Grandes, Camilo José Cela to Javier Marías.’
The New York Times
‘Humorous and evocative, without pathos but with emotion.’
Les Inrockuptibles