Born in Madrid, and Segovian at heart, Cristina Leyva is a storyteller and writer of children’s and young people’s literature. During the pandemic, she created Cuentos por Teléfono, which began during lockdown, when she was reading a story from her library to her friends’ children. It later became a Spotify channel, where Cristina has continued to record her own stories even after the end of lockdown. Cristina subsequently published ¡Niña nueva en el parque! with La Estrella Azul, a publishing house that gives a voice to autism. It is a children’s picture book that tells the tender story of friendship between a boy and a girl who have to understand and accept each other in order to be friends. That work was followed by Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica and in 2026 she will publish her second novel, Vamos a ser fuego. She has just finished her third novel for youngsters.
Cristina, how did your passion for children’s and young people’s literature come about?
My passion as a reader arose when my first daughter was born and I rediscovered children’s and young people’s literature, which had given me so much joy when I was young. Then, as a writer, it really catalyzed four years ago, when I had the chance to take the Children’s and Young People’s Literature course at the Escuela de Escritores writers’ school. It was this experience that led to Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica.
Along with illustrator Rocío Martínez, you published ¡Niña nueva en el parque!, whose main character is an autistic girl. How did you go about collecting material to write this story?
For two wonderful years I was Editor and Editorial Manager of the Asociación Autismo Ávila, and its publishing house La Estrella Azul, which publishes autism-related narratives. That is where the idea came from, of writing this story of Violeta and Perico’s friendship, which emphasizes difference as something enriching. At the Association, I was privileged to have the professionals who work there as advisors, and to meet autistic people and their families. In addition, I had the great fortune of working with Rocío, which was very enriching!
Tell us about Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica, and the research process for this novel set in prehistoric times.
The novel is an adventure that transports us 40,000 years before our time, to a world from which we have a lot to learn. It is a world that I believe is essential to return to, in order to know our history better. The encounter between past and present takes place through a story of friendship that goes beyond time, in the era of hunter-gatherers, of mammoths, of nature in its wildest and most fertile state. The research process necessary to be able to describe that time was extensive. I traveled several times to the archaeological site of Atapuerca, I read, I listened to many hours of lectures by the great palaeontologists… a part I particularly enjoyed.
Music is also very present throughout your work. What role do you think it plays in your creativity?
For me, music is very important in the writing process. I always listen to music while I write and, at the same time, it is also relevant to my characters. In the case of Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica, music is essential in Clara’s character development. In the second novel, Vamos a ser fuego, the whole novel actually develops around the theme of music. A piece that always inspires me a lot is Erik Satie’s Gymnopédies, but I listen to all kinds of music.
In both ¡Niña nueva en el parque! and Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica, the stories revolve around a beautiful friendship between two people who are, a priori, quite different. In this respect, what message would you like young people who read your books to take away from them?
My intention is that they enjoy the pure pleasure of reading, without any moralizing on my part. Each reader is unique, and each must draw his or her own conclusions. But it is true that the acceptance of others through empathy, solidarity, connection through music and art, the ability to adapt, and sensitivity to the planet, are themes that accompany me in my life and in my writing.
For your diary
Cristina Leyva will present Yo, Clara. Tú, Malica in Geneva on Thursday, 16 October 2025, at 19:15, at the Ferme Pommier (7, chemin du Pommier, Le Grand-Saconnex).
This event is organized by the Association of Spanish International Civil Servants and Palabras+ and will be moderated by Gemma Capellas Espuny and Jesús Guerrero Buitrago.
More information
Association website: afie.es
Instagram: @palabras_mas /@espera_que_te_lo_cuento
Facebook: Palabras+ and X (Twitter): AFIE_ES