A book to read with the kids: today we recommend Érica Marino, by Little Rex

Érica Marino says that children's literature consumption habits have changed dramatically. She says that adults used to choose what children read. And she says that today, it's children who pull what interests them off the shelves. Marino is an expert at this, at detecting in an ocean of possibilities what readers will like, especially if they are minors . She does this as country manager of Ediciones Urano Argentina and editor of the new children's imprint called Little Rex .

That's why, if she thinks of herself as a child, Marino sees herself "attached to the internet" and reading Lyna and Mandarina: An Adventure on the High Seas , "because they're my favorite characters as an adult," she tells Clarín . And at the newspaper's request, she reviews the role of books in her life and recommends two must-reads.

–If you were a kid now, what book would you never miss?

–Today, children's literature consumption habits have changed a lot. Before, adults chose what children read, but today, boys and girls seek to identify with what they read and mostly look to books for what they've already found in the digital world. If I were a little girl today, I'd probably be hooked on the internet, and I'd choose Lyna and Mandarina: An Adventure on the High Seas , because they're my favorite characters as an adult. It's a fun story, full of adventures, and on top of that, at sea—everything I love, rolled into one book.

–What do you remember from your childhood readings?

–My childhood was long ago, haha, but I remember practically coming into the world with books. My favorite books were a collection of wonderful cardboard stories with a hologram on the cover, which my dad bought when I was just a month old. Those books are part of my earliest memories, but the reality is I read everything I came across. I learned to read very early and was quite insatiable. And in school, my favorite was Aire Libre by María Elena. It was my second-grade reading book, and I loved its characters (Luciano Montes, his family, and his dog, Poncho), and I remember it like it was yesterday.

–How does the publisher choose the books it will publish?

–We choose carefully, paying close attention to changes in consumption patterns and the trends of each reader group. Once we have the manuscript, it's edited or adapted, and a lot of work goes into the illustrations and design so they appropriately accompany and complement the text.

–Which title in the publisher's catalog has a special history?

–I don't have many anecdotes yet, because this July we're just launching Little Rex, Urano World's new children's label. I can tell you that I'm very happy to continue working with Lyna Vallejos and Daniel Morro. We've been working together for seven years, and they continue to surprise me every time I receive their texts.