The aim of this article is to study the critical reception of two translations of texts related to surrealism at the end of Francoism, together with the censorship process they underwent, in the context of the emergence of new publishing houses and student movements. Indeed, the translation and reception of André Breton’s books in Spain can be seen as signs of the opening up of Spanish society that began in the 1960s, heralding the end of the authoritarian regime and the country’s transition to democracy. As such, these translations coincide with other manifestations of this opening up, including tourism, political pluralism, the influence of Marxism, and greater tolerance of religion. We begin by presenting the different publishing houses willing to translate and publish works by Breton, accused of being a Marxist and therefore in total opposition to the opinions of the Francoist government. We then focus on the reception of two of his key texts, Manifiestos del surrealismo (1969) and El surrealismo. Puntos de vista y manifestaciones (1972), by literary critics who published reviews in the newspapers ABC and Hoja del lunes de Barcelona, as well as in the magazines Triunfo and La Estafeta Literaria. This will enable us to validate our hypothesis that these translations – and their reception – can be seen as political acts on the part of the most militant members of the population.