The publication of Al Sur de La Moraleja – ROAKS, written by Ángel Soto, brings back the history of Royal Oaks, a residential development closely linked to the Torrejón Air Base. The plot unfolds in the autumn of 1972, covering locations such as Alcobendas, La Moraleja, and El Encinar de los Reyes, offering a narrative perspective on a North American community established during the final stages of the Franco regime.
This work is presented as the first literary reconstruction of this residential enclave, popularly known as “Little America.” For four decades, American families coexisted in this place, maintaining their own social and cultural structures a short distance from Madrid.
Royal Oaks, nicknamed ROAKS by its residents, operated as a self-sufficient urbanization, equipped with a supermarket, cinema, sports facilities, and baseball leagues, replicating the American lifestyle on Spanish soil. This environment contrasted with the social and political reality of Madrid at the time, creating a marked duality between two ways of life within the same geographical context.
The novel portrays this contrast through a choral plot that intertwines personal stories with historical elements. This setting features personal relationships, cultural tensions, and clandestine activities, in a context where the presence of espionage and Cold War dynamics is also hinted at.
For the creation of this story, Ángel Soto conducted extensive research over several years. His work included gathering testimonies from former American residents and analyzing declassified archives, providing a solid documentary basis for the fiction. The result merges fictional characters with real events, seeking to recreate a specific period where the coexistence between both communities, though seemingly stable, maintained a fragile balance that foreshadowed future changes.
Al Sur de La Moraleja – ROAKS incorporates multimedia elements, enriching the reader's experience. Each chapter includes QR codes that provide access to photographs, music from the era, and relevant historical documentation. This resource expands the visual and auditory context of the narrative, placing the work at a time prior to significant social and political transformations in Spain, which adds a historical dimension beyond the fiction.
