Just as bottles in days gone by were lost to the waves, Portuguese literature has also been slipping away with the tides of time, reaching fewer and fewer readers. According to 2022 Eurostat data, Portugal is one of the countries with the lowest reading rates in Europe. This growing disinterest in literature, coupled with the increasing digitalisation of society, has contributed to a decline in people’s attachment to books. To make matters worse, a study conducted by the Gulbenkian Foundation and the Institute of Social Sciences of University of Lisbon points to socioeconomic inequalities as one of the main barriers to accessing culture.

It was in response to this trend that the “Palavras à Deriva” (Words Adrift) project was born — an initiative by Agora Aveiro with the important mission of promoting national literature across all age groups, fostering a love of books and literary cultural heritage, which is essential for the development of a more critical, informed, and cohesive society.

Thus, on the afternoon of 21 June, during the 49th edition of the Aveiro Book Fair, words were cast adrift and ventured through the city in bottles. Our volunteers shared literary excerpts from over 30 Portuguese writers with members of the community, with the aim of encouraging reading, promoting the sharing of books, and celebrating national authors.

In a time marked by increasing digitalisation and inequalities in access to literature, the “Palavras à Deriva” went against the tide. It reminded us that books remain beacons of discovery, reflection, and connection.

As the words explored new seas at the Aveiro Book Fair, our volunteers also took the opportunity to promote our next major project: RIA: Ruas de Intervenção Artística (Streets of Artistic Intervention). This event will take place on Saturday, 28 June, from 2:30 to 5:30 PM, and invites young artists from Aveiro to showcase their work in 10 local businesses across the city. At the end of the day, at 6:30 PM, there will be a traditional arraial-style celebration with food, drinks, great music, and plenty of fun at Jardim do Alboi. Through this initiative, we hope to introduce the community to some of the many talents in our region, as well as to the diverse local shops in the city of canals.

This is not the first time Agora Aveiro has embarked on a literary mission. Projects such as “Refresca a Tua Mente” (Refresh Your Mind), in which we gave new life to broken fridges by turning them into bookcrossing stations for free book exchanges, or “Era Uma Vez” (Once Upon a Time), with storytelling sessions for children, form part of our journey. In larger-scale projects, such as “Histórias Cravadas” (Engraved Stories) and “Heróis de Aveiro” (Heroes of Aveiro), we went further and created our own books, preserving stories that deserve to be told and read in print.

Thanks to the dedication and creativity of our volunteers, literature has once again surfaced. We hope this initiative leads to more words adrift, ensuring that Portuguese literature reaches safe harbour and always finds its way to new readers!

And to end this news piece, we leave you with one of the poems we offered to those who found us:

não me deixes morrer longe do mar
das vagas de palavras que me sussurras
quando fechas os olhos espraiando os lábios
e as tuas mãos são algas apetecidas

não me deixes morrer longe do mar
das asas aladas de pássaros vivos
que ecoam as noites em amor escritas
salgadas por temperos escondidos

não me deixes morrer longe do mar
das marés tão certas de incerteza
como a vida preceder o tempo
ou o horizonte ser infinito com rosto

não me deixes morrer longe… de ti

Poem by Margarida Vieira

“Palavras à Deriva” is part of Agora Aveiro’s “Oficina da Criatividade” project. It is supported by the Municipality of Aveiro and IPDJ – Portuguese Institute of Sport and Youth I.P..