page_title: Gerard Quintana
section_title: Books
hierarchical_section_title: Gerard Quintana / Books
caption_attribution_description: English: Gerard Quintana signing copies of his new book, Barcelona, April 23 2015
context_page_description: Gerard Quintana Rodeja is a spanish Español singer, songwriter, poet, writer, actor, and radio and TV personality. He first came to prominence in 1986-2001 as the lead singer of the rock band Sopa de Cabra. Sopa de Cabra was one of the leading bands of the rock català genre. Since the dissolution of the band in 2001, he has pursued a very successful solo career. As a singer/songwriter independent of his extensive input into the original musical repertoire of Sopa de Cabra, he completed 5 well-received albums between 2003 and 2010, together with 3 in collaboration with Jordi Batiste, and a recent album with Xarim Aresté. His solo work from 2003-10 reveals a personal and intimate style which is not easily classified, but may, perhaps, be characterised as poetry and music about the human condition. He also writes and publishes poetry, and has written regularly as a journalist for online Catalan newspapers and journals. He has published two books and appeared in the film Diogenes, the dog.
context_section_description: Quintana has a distinctive writing style; fluent, direct and full of vivid visual imagery. Although he had regularly published articles in newspapers, it was not until April 2012 that he published his first full-length book, Més enllà de les estrelles ('Beyond the stars'), a lively personal account of the 2011 tour.  It includes many autobiographical insights, and paints a picture of the complex organisation and hard work behind a rock tour.  The book is illustrated with photographs by David Julià.
  His second book was published in February 2015, an unexpected departure into a completely different literary genre:  a story for young children.  L’odissea de sant Jordi ('The Odyssey of Saint George') is an original take on the legend of Saint George (the patron saint of Catalonia) with charming illustrations by Anna Clariana.  The story blends the usual Catalan legend of the saint with elements of Greek mythology, such as a one-eyed giant and dangerously seductive Sirens.  Quintana’s Saint George is at first a very timid little boy who is continually frightened by the world around him.  But he embarks on a journey alone to try to face up to his fears and conquer them, armed only with a book, symbolising knowledge, and a rose, symbolising love. The magical power of music also enters into the story, and the song that assists Jordi when he finally encounters the dragon is a real one, written and performed by Quintana and Aresté, that can be downloaded via the publisher’s website or by way of a QR code printed within and on the back cover of the book.
caption: Gerard Quintana signing copies of his new book. Barcelona, 23 April 2015
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