Premio Biblioteca Breve

The Premio Biblioteca Breve is a literary award given annually by the publisher Seix Barral (now part of Grupo Planeta) to an unpublished novel in the Spanish language. Its prize is €30,000 and publication of the winning work. It is delivered in February, to a work from the preceding year.

History
On 14 June 1958, a jury comprising literary critics Josep Maria Castellet and José María Valverde, and editors Víctor Seix (editorial director), Juan Petit (literary director) and Carlos Barral (director of the collection), gave the inaugural award in Sitges, Barcelona. As stated by members of the jury, it was intended to encourage young writers and the renewal of Spanish literature.

Due to the death of Juan Petit in January 1964 (replaced as literary director by Gabriel Ferrater), the exile of José María Valverde to Canada in 1967, and the death of Víctor Seix in October of that year, the jury was joined by Salvador Clotas, Luis Goytisolo, and Juan García Hortelano for subsequent editions. The bases were also modified: for a few years the award took Petit's name as a tribute. In the same way, the Spanish political situation dictated that, in some editions, eligibility was extended to any Iberian Romance language, although no works in Catalan or Portuguese were awarded.

The 1971 edition's jury comprised Luis Goytisolo, Juan Rulfo, Joan Ferraté i Soler, and Pere Gimferrer, with Guillermo Cabrera Infante joining in 1972. However, in 1973 the award ceased to be given due to numerous internal factors (dissensions within the publisher) and external factors (problems with censorship).

In 1998, Basilio Baltasar, the new literary director of Seix Barral (by this time part of Grupo Planeta), decided to reconvene the prize, with the aim of recovering the spirit with which it was born, trying to recognize both Spanish and Latin American authors.

First era winners (1958–1972)

 * 1958 – Las afueras by Luis Goytisolo (Spain)
 * 1959 – Nuevas amistades by Juan García Hortelano (Spain)
 * 1960 – Declared vacant; finalists were Encerrados con un solo juguete by Juan Marsé (Spain), La criba by Daniel Sueiro (Spain), and Los extraordinarios by Ana Mairena (Mexico)
 * 1961 – Dos días de setiembre by José Manuel Caballero (Spain)
 * 1962 – The Time of the Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa (Peru)
 * 1963 – Los albañiles (novel) by Vicente Leñero (Mexico)
 * 1964 – Vista de amanecer en el trópico by Guillermo Cabrera Infante (Cuba)
 * 1965 – Últimas tardes con Teresa by Juan Marsé (Spain)
 * Finalist: Betrayed by Rita Hayworth by Manuel Puig (Argentina)
 * 1966 – Not given
 * 1967 – A Change of Skin by Carlos Fuentes (Mexico)
 * Finalist: El mercurio by José María Guelbenzu (Spain)
 * 1968 – País portátil by Adriano González León (Venezuela)
 * 1969 – Una meditación by Juan Benet
 * 1970 – Due to internal problems at the publisher, no award was given in this edition. It would have gone to The Obscene Bird of Night by José Donoso (Chile).
 * 1971 – Sonámbulo del sol by Nivaria Tejera (Cuba)
 * 1972 – La circuncisión del señor solo by José Leyva (Spain)