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GENERAL NEWS<br />

THE PROLONGED<br />

AGONY OF AMÉRICA<br />

BOOKSHOP ENDED<br />

Ricardo grabs an<br />

edition of La vida<br />

breve, by Juan Carlos<br />

Onetti, while he tells<br />

that the Librería<br />

América will close its<br />

doors after 74 years of<br />

service.<br />

The bookshop was<br />

founded by Jaime<br />

Navarro, Ricardo's<br />

grandfather, in 1944.<br />

Fernando Navarro,<br />

Jaime's son and father<br />

of Ricardo, has been in<br />

charge of the business<br />

since the 80s. "I had<br />

three bookstores: two<br />

Americas and one that<br />

was called Don<br />

Quixote, but I closed<br />

them because the<br />

business was not<br />

working, "says<br />

Fernando.<br />

The America that is<br />

still standing, nestled in<br />

the disorder of the<br />

Boyacá Passage,<br />

remained tenacious<br />

during difficult years.<br />

Outside, in the passage,<br />

the sale of pirate books<br />

makes him a voracious,<br />

disloyal competition.<br />

But the bookstore<br />

missed the fight last<br />

October, when<br />

Fernando decided it<br />

was time to close the<br />

doors: "We are doing<br />

the liquidation,<br />

returning books. The<br />

idea is to close as soon<br />

as possible, between<br />

April and May, "he<br />

says, with a curt voice.<br />

Fernando hesitates<br />

when asked why the<br />

closure.<br />

To this he responds<br />

with several<br />

hypotheses: the price of<br />

books, the deterioration<br />

of the city center,<br />

piracy, lack of reading.<br />

In Medellín, according<br />

to the Citizen<br />

Perception survey of<br />

'Medellín Cómo<br />

Vamos', only 15<br />

percent of those over<br />

18 years of age read at<br />

least one book in 2015.<br />

The Center, moreover,<br />

ceased to be a<br />

gathering place and<br />

recreation, as it<br />

happened many years<br />

ago. Darío Úsuga, an<br />

old-fashioned<br />

bookseller who worked<br />

at the Continental<br />

bookshop and who<br />

now has his bookstore<br />

Mall of the Book and<br />

Culture (Pasaje La<br />

Bastilla), believes that<br />

reading has fallen.<br />

"Here, some time ago,<br />

professors came and<br />

they were anxious to<br />

see what was new.<br />

They still come, but it's<br />

not the same anymore.<br />

" Úsuga, like Fernando,<br />

believes that piracy has<br />

hit head-on traditional<br />

bookstores.In the<br />

passage La Bastille, a<br />

few blocks from the<br />

America, met<br />

intellectuals of the city<br />

at the beginning of the<br />

last century. It was<br />

common to see there,<br />

among animated talks,<br />

characters like Tomás<br />

Carrasquilla and<br />

Porfirio Barba Jacob.<br />

Picture taken from:http://www.semana.com/nacion/articulo/claudia-lopez-por-la-presidencia-2018/510853By Juan Jose Giraldo Lopez,<br />

Senior 2<br />

People Who Make<br />

a Difference?<br />

Have you ever made a<br />

difference? If you have,<br />

how did you feel? If you<br />

have not done it, you will<br />

want to read these tips to<br />

start making the<br />

difference:<br />

Picture taken<br />

from:<br />

http://www.a<br />

mandagwhit<br />

aker.com/20<br />

15/05/wecan-makedifference.ht<br />

1. Be a hard and<br />

smart worker.<br />

2. Have consistency<br />

and perseverance.<br />

3. Be a peopleperson.<br />

4. Be a truth teller.<br />

5. Be a problem<br />

solver.<br />

6. Be a lifelong<br />

learner.<br />

7. Deliver the<br />

Goods.<br />

Being a hard and smart<br />

worker creates an impact<br />

in other people. Success<br />

does not come easy to<br />

anybody but to people<br />

who are constant and<br />

determined.<br />

Consistency and<br />

perseverance help you<br />

keep the plan going.<br />

By: Caroline<br />

Molina.<br />

3

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