Antonio Muñoz Molina

Antonio Muñoz Molina (born 10 January 1956) is a Spanish writer and, since 8 June 1995, a full member of the Royal Spanish Academy. He currently resides in New York City, United States. In 2004-2005 he served as the director of the Instituto Cervantes of New York.

He was born in the town of Úbeda in Jaén province.

He studied art history at the University of Granada and journalism in Madrid.He began writing in the 1980s and his first published book, "El Robinsón urbano," a collection of his journalistic work, was published in 1984. His columns have regularly appeared in "El País" and "Die Welt".

His first novel, "Beatus ille," appeared in 1986. It features the imaginary city of Mágina— a re-creation of his Andalusian birthplace — which would reappear in some his later works.

In 1987 Muñoz Molina was awarded Spain's National Narrative Prize for "El invierno en Lisboa" (translated as "Winter in Lisbon)," a homage to the genres of film noir and jazz music. His "El jinete polaco" received the Planeta Prize in 1991 and, again, the National Narrative Prize in 1992.

His other novels include "Beltenebros" (1989), a story of love and political intrigue in post-Civil War Madrid, "Los misterios de Madrid" (1992), and "El dueño del secreto" (1994).

Margaret Sayers Peden's English-language translation of Muñoz Molina's novel "Sepharad" won the PEN/Book-of-the-Month Club Translation Prize in 2004.

Bibliography

* "El Robinsón urbano", 1984.
* "Diario de Nautilus", 1985.
* "Beatus Ille", 1986.
* "El invierno en Lisboa", 1987.
* "Las otras vidas", 1988.
* "Beltenebros", 1989.
* "El jinete polaco", 1991.
* "Los misterios de Madrid", 1992.
* "Nada del otro mundo", 1993.
* "El dueño del secreto", 1994.
* "Las apariencias", 1995.
* "Ardor guerrero", 1995.
* "La huerta del Edén", 1996.
* "Pura alegría", 1996.
* "Plenilunio", 1997.
* "Carlota Fainberg", 1999.
* "En ausencia de Blanca", 2001.
* "Sefarad", 2001.
* "La vida por delante", 2002.
* "Las ventanas de Manhattan", 2004

Quotation

:"Leer es el único acto soberano que nos queda." ("Reading is the only sovereign act we have left.")

External links

* [http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/pep/pepdesc.cfm?id=4224 Books That Changed My Life] PEN World Voices at the New York Public Library May 4, 2008
* [http://mumonline.org Mumonline | Open Directory] : the most comprehensive Internet directory about Antonio Muñoz Molina