Javier Cercas Mena (Ibahernando, Cáceres, 1962) is a Spanish writer and columnist. He holds a PhD in Hispanic Philology and was a professor of literature at the University of Gerona. His work has been translated into more than thirty languages. Among his most well-known novels are "Soldiers of Salamis", "The Anatomy of an Instant", "The Impostor" and "Terra Alta", for which he received the Planeta Prize in 2019. He has been awarded numerous prizes, including the National Prize for Narrative.