Reading his book Manuel Vilas, you are overwhelmed with a sense of lightness. Even if he delves into the psyche of his characters, even if the buzzwords that often fly out of their mouths can make you think for a while, the pages flow with characteristic naturalness.

That’s how it was “Horde”, published in Greek in 2020 by Ikaros, an autobiographical novel that functions as a literary diary in which the Spanish author searches for his roots through striped writing, sometimes elegiac, sometimes harsh, but always honest.

And then came pandemic and Manuel Vilas decided to place a love story in this dystopian setting. The protagonist is a fifty-year-old man who left Madrid for the Spanish suburbs, met a forty-year-old woman and instantly fell in love.

Their story unfolds idyllic yet realistic, accommodating every idealization but also every real wear and tear that inevitably comes with dizzying love. At the same time, the author manages – beyond the main part of the story – to comment on every aspect of human life with the words of his heroes.

Shortly before the performance of “The Kisses” Athens (4/5) And Thessaloniki (5/5), Manuel Vilas spoke to K about his latest book, the pandemic and the time he spends leaving behind what he doesn’t need but keeping the important things.

Kisses is not an autobiographical book, but I don’t believe in the difference between autobiographical literature and fiction. I only believe in the concept of literature.

All my books require a lot of work. Whether it’s fiction or autobiography, the effort is the same. Many hours, many efforts, a lot of psychological exhaustion.

– We realized that life is eating with a friend on the terrace, looking at the clouds, going to bookstores, sitting in the sun, watching a movie, getting lost on an unfamiliar road, traveling by train, how simple life is life. However, we have already forgotten about it.

– The story of Kisses existed before the pandemic, I wanted to write about love, about how a love story inevitably begins with a kiss on the lips. I wrote quite a lot of the story when the pandemic hit, and I used the pandemic as context for the love story I was already writing. I realized that love serves to fight a collective misfortune such as a virus.

– Each time I face loneliness, it is more and more difficult to write. But life itself writes for me, which cannot be changed. I need to write every day, even if it’s the 25thV December or the 1stV January.

– I have never had writer’s block, but there are books written more naturally, and others that require more effort, mostly psychological. Yes, my writing is based on imagining life as I see it, observing life and talking about it in a book. It’s what keeps me balanced so I don’t go crazy.

– Aging is a process of enlightenment, you understand everything better. But it no longer serves you the way you would like because your body has grown old. I don’t want to grow old is a dark, scary verb. Let’s talk about the life that passes us by, and not about old age.

“That’s right, books speak to you according to your age. A great novel like Don Quixote changes meaning depending on how old you are in your thirties, forties, or fifties. I would have to re-read all the books I read to understand what they are saying to me now, at my current age. This is almost like the thought of Jorge Luis Borges.

– Only a life of strong love, where there is eroticism, friendship and tenderness, can give meaning to life. That’s what “kissing” means. Politics now wants to colonize people’s hearts. They tell you how to live. Fortunately, there is literature, music and art, they save us.

“Ta Filia” by Manuel Vilas is published by Ikaros. The author will present his book in Athens as a guest of the Cervantes and Ikaros Institute publications in a discussion with Philippos Dracontaidis on Thursday, May 4 at 19:00 (Skouf 31, Kolonaki). On Friday, May 5, Manuel Vilas will be in Thessaloniki for the 19th International Book Fair to discuss with Konstantinos Palaiologos (Pavilion 13, Alki Zei Hall at 20:00).