Ana María Shua facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ana María Shua
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| Born | Ana María Schoua April 22, 1951 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Occupation | Writer, illustrator |
| Alma mater | University of Buenos Aires |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Notable awards | Guggenheim Fellowship |
| Spouse | Silvio Fabrykant |
| Children | Gabriela Fabrykant Paloma Fabrykant Vera Fabrykant |
Ana María Shua (born April 22, 1951) is a famous writer from Argentina. She is especially known for writing very short stories called microfiction.
Ana María Shua has written more than eighty books! These books cover many different types of writing. She has written novels (long stories), short stories, and even tiny stories called microfiction. She also writes poetry, plays, and books for kids. Some of her books are funny, and others are about Jewish folklore. She has also written film scripts and articles for newspapers.
She has won many awards from her home country and around the world. One big award she received was a Guggenheim Fellowship. Many people think she is one of Argentina's most important living writers. In the world of Spanish literature, some even call her the "Queen of the Micro-Story"!
Contents
Becoming a Writer
Early Life and School
Ana María Shua was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1951. Her original family name was Schoua. She loved reading and writing from a young age. Books like Black Beauty really inspired her.
When she was just 16, she published her first book of poetry. It was called El sol y yo (The Sun and I). She was still a student at the Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires. She won a prize that helped pay for 1,000 copies of her book to be printed. This book also won another award called the "Faja de Honor."
Later, Shua went to the University of Buenos Aires. She studied literature and earned a degree in education.
A Time Away from Home
During a difficult time in Argentina, Ana María Shua had to leave her country. She went to France and lived in Paris from 1976 to 1977. While there, she worked for a Spanish magazine. Her sister and two cousins also had to leave Argentina during this period.
Back Home and Writing Success
When Ana María Shua returned to Argentina, she published her first novel. It was called Soy paciente (I Am Patient) and came out in 1980. This book won an award from a publishing company. Many people saw the book as a way to talk about the difficult times Argentina had been through.
The next year, she published her first collection of short stories. It was called Los días de pesca (Fishing Days). In 1984, her novel Los amores de Laurita (Laurita's Loves) became very popular.
That same year, she published La sueñera (The Dreamer). This was her first book of microfiction. These are extremely short stories, sometimes called "flash fiction" in English. Shua had worked on La sueñera for 10 years before it was published!
Since then, she has published many more microfiction collections. Some titles include Casa de Geishas (House of Geishas) and Botánica del caos (Botany of Chaos). She loves writing these tiny stories. She once said that she likes how "every word is essential" in microfiction. She also said that writing them is like martial arts, where you use the reader's own knowledge to make the story powerful.
In 1994, she received a special award called a Guggenheim Fellowship. This helped her write her novel El libro de los recuerdos (The Book of Memories). This story is about a Jewish family in Argentina, partly based on her own family's history.
Ana María Shua has also worked as a journalist and helped create advertisements. She has written scripts for movies, too. Some of her own stories, like Los amores de Laurita, were made into films. She also helped write the movie Where Are You My Love, That I Cannot Find You?
Besides novels and short stories, Shua has written many books for children. She also writes funny books and stories based on Jewish folklore. One of these is El pueblo de los tontos (The Town of Fools).
In 2009, a full collection of her stories was published. It was called Que tengas una vida interesante (May You Have an Interesting Life). Some of her stories have also been translated into English.
Awards and Special Recognition
Ana María Shua has won many awards. These include the two awards for her first poetry book, El sol y yo. She also won an award for her novel Soy paciente. The Guggenheim Fellowship was another big honor.
Her children's book La fábrica del terror (The Terror Factory) received awards from the Banco del Libro and the International Board on Books for Young People. Her book Fenómenos de circo (Circus Freaks) won first place in the stories category from the Argentine Ministry of Culture.
Her 1997 novel, La muerte como efecto secundario (Death as a Side Effect), was chosen as one of the 100 best Spanish novels of the last 25 years. This was decided by an important group called the International Congress of the Spanish Language.
In 2016, Shua received the first-ever Juan José Arreola Ibero-American Prize for Mini-Fiction. This award celebrates her amazing work in very short stories.
About Her Life
Ana María Shua's parents were Jewish, from Polish and Lebanese families. Her father was an atheist, so she grew up without much religion. However, she believes that being Jewish is part of who she is. Jewish themes sometimes appear in her writing.
As a fiction writer, Shua prefers not to read reviews or criticisms of her own work. She likes to focus on creating her stories.
She is married to Silvio Fabrykant, who is an architect and photographer. They got married in 1975. They have three children: Gabriela, Vera, and Paloma Fabrykant.
Her Books
Novels
- Soy paciente (1980)
- Los amores de Laurita (1984)
- El libro de los recuerdos (1994)
- La muerte como efecto secundario (1997)
Short Story Collections
- Los días de pesca (1981)
- Viajando se conoce gente (1988)
Microfiction Collections
- La sueñera (1984)
- Casa de geishas (1992)
- Botánica del caos (2000)
- Temporada de fantasmas (2004)
- Fenómenos de circo (2011)
Children's Books
- La batalla de los elefantes y los cocodrilos (1988)
- La fábrica del terror (1991)
- La puerta para salir del mundo (1992)
- Cuentos judíos con fantasmas y demonios (1994)
- Ani salva a la perra Laika (1996)
Poetry Collections
- El sol y yo (1967)
Movie Scripts
- Soy paciente (1986)
- Los amores de Laurita (1986)
- ¿Dónde estás amor de mi vida que no te puedo encontrar? (1992)
See also
In Spanish: Ana María Shua para niños
