Edgar Cantero

Spanish writer and cartoonist

Edgar Cantero
Born	(1981-05-27) May 27, 1981 (age 43) Barcelona
Nationality	Spanish
Occupation(s)	Writer, cartoonist
Notable work	Dormir amb Winona Ryder The Supernatural Enhancements Meddling Kids
Website	punkahoy.blogspot.com

Edgar Cantero (born 27 May 1981 in Barcelona) is a Spanish writer and cartoonist working in Catalan, Spanish, and English. He is best known in Catalonia for his award-winning debut Dormir amb Winona Ryder,^[1]^[2] and abroad for the New York Times best-selling horror-comedy novel Meddling Kids (2017).^[3]

Life

Cantero was born in Barcelona in 1981. At 18 he started entering writing competitions in Catalan, winning numerous awards for his short stories and novellas.^[4] His debut novel, Dormir amb Winona Ryder (2007) won the Ciutat de Badalona and the Joan Crexells awards.^[5]^[6] In that year he also began contributing to the satirical magazine El Jueves as a writer and cartoonist.^[7]

After a second novel in Catalan, Vallvi (after the neighborhood of Vallvidrera in Barcelona)^[8], Cantero tried his luck in English. In the following years he released three novels with American publisher Doubleday.^[9] Despite his novel Meddling Kids becoming a best-seller, his work in English remains largely unknown in his country.^[7] Since 2019 he lives in Los Angeles.^[7]

In 2024 he returned to his native language with his sixth novel, Ràdio Free Camaco.^[7]^[10]^[11]

Bibliography

Novels

Catalan

Dormir amb Winona Ryder ("Sleeping with Winona Ryder" – 2007)^[8]
Vallvi (2011)
Ràdio Free Camaco (2024)

English

The Supernatural Enhancements (2014)^[12]
Meddling Kids (2017)^[13]
This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us (2018)^[14]

Novellas

Catalan

Baileys n'coke (2008)
Dies delenda (2008)

Short stories

Catalan

"El nexe entre el sexe i el plexe venós dorsal" (2005)
"L'urinari d'Hesíode" (2005). English translation, "Aesop's Urinal", published in Best European Fiction 2016, 2015.^[15]
"20/XX" (2006)
"Tres nadons" (2007)
"Un cadàver bonic" (2013)

English

"There's a Giant Trapdoor Spider Under Your Bed" (2018)^[16]
"The Meddler" (2018), a spin-off set in the aftermath of Meddling Kids.^[17]^[18]

References

^ Marrugat, Jordi (2014-03-20). Narrativa catalana de la postmodernitat. Històries, formes i motius (Catalan postmodern narrative. Stories, shapes and motifs). Edicions Univers. Barcelona. p. 38. ISBN 9788447537587. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ Muntaner, Maria (2010). Transformacions: llenguatges teòrics i relacions interartístiques (1975-2000) (Transformations: theoretical languages and interartistic links (1975-2000)). L'Abadia de Montserrat. pp. 221–223. ISBN 9788498832938. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ "Print Hardcover Best Sellers". The New York Times. 6 August 2017.
^ Doria, Sergi (7 December 2007). "El joven escritor Edgar Cantero nos propone "Dormir amb Winona Ryder" (Young author Edgar Cantero proposes 'Sleeping with Winona Ryder')". ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 July 2024.
^ "El jove Edgar Cantero obté el premi Crexells per 'Dormir amb Winona Ryder' (Young Edgar Cantero wins the Crexells Award for 'Sleeping with Winona Ryder')". Diaride Girona. 9 April 2008. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ "'Dormir amb Winona Ryder', del joven Edgar Cantero se lleva el XXXVII Premi Crexells de novela catalana (Young Edgar Cantero's 'Sleeping with Winona Ryder' wins the XXXVII Crexells award for Catalan novel)". Europa Press. 8 April 2008. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Richart, Alba (11 June 2024). "L'escriptor català venerat per 'The New York Times' que arrasa als EUA, però passa desapercebut a Catalunya". Nacional (in Catalan). Retrieved 2 July 2024.
^ ^a ^b Massot, Josep. "¿De qué escriben los jóvenes? (What are young people writing about?)". La Vanguardia. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ "Edgar Cantero". Penguin Random House. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
^ Recort, Víctor (28 May 2024). "Edgar Cantero, l'escriptor català best-seller del New York Times: "A la literatura catalana semblen obligatòries les sublectures enriquidores"". El País (in Catalan). Retrieved 2 July 2024.
^ Gomila, Andreu (1 July 2024). "3 llibres que t'has de llegir aquest mes de juliol". Time Out Barcelona (in Catalan). Retrieved 2 July 2024.
^ Floyd Kelly, James (15 December 2014). "A TL;DR Book Review —Supernatural Enhancements". Geek Dad. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ "Eight Months". Punk Ahoy!. 3 August 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
^ "This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us". Publishers Weekly. 28 May 2018. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ Best European Fiction 2016. Dalkey Archive. 2015. pp. 240–244. ISBN 9781628971149.
^ "The Dark Corners Collection". Sci-fi & Scary. 25 Oct 2018. Retrieved 8 Apr 2019.
^ "Spooky Short Stories". Penguin Random House. Retrieved 8 Apr 2019.
^ "The Meddler". Punk Ahoy!. 16 Oct 2018. Retrieved 8 Apr 2019.