Henriette Morvan facts for kids

Enriqueta Peptitpas Cotton (born 1900), better known as Henriette Morvan or Damita Duende, was a Chilean journalist, writer, and editor. She was famous for writing and collecting stories for children and young adults.

Her Career as a Writer

Children's books became very popular in Chile starting in the 1930s. Henriette Morvan quickly became a leading writer in this field. She published books like Doce cuentos de príncipes y reyes (Twelve Stories of Princes and Kings) and Doce cuentos de hadas (Twelve Fairy Tales) in 1938.

She worked alongside other important authors of her time. These included Ernesto Montenegro, who wrote Cuentos de mi Tío Ventura in 1930. She also collaborated with Blanca Santa Cruz Ossa, known for her collections of myths and legends. Another famous writer was Marta Brunet, who published Cuentos para Marisol in 1938.

Henriette Morvan, along with Blanca Santa Cruz Ossa and her sister Elvira, helped collect and share children's stories in Chile. This was especially important in the late 1930s and 1940s. Her work was part of a group of writers who wanted to teach through their stories. Ester Cosani was another writer in this group.

In the late 1930s, Henriette Morvan started writing for the magazine Zig-Zag [es]. Her articles were part of a collection called "Damita Duende." This became her pen name, and she used it to publish collections of legends and fables.

She also worked as an editor for several magazines. These included Campeón in 1937 and El Cabrito in 1945. Besides her work in Chile, she wrote for many publications in the United States, Mexico, and Cuba.

Her Published Works

Here are some of the books Henriette Morvan wrote:

• Manual de cocina (Cooking Manual) (1938)
• Sume: (Leyenda brasileña) (Sume: A Brazilian Legend) (1939)
• El héroe de Lepanto (The Hero of Lepanto) (1948, an essay)
• Boomerang (1957, a novel)
• La Cenicienta: cuento de Grimm (Cinderella: Grimm's Story) (her own version, Editorial Zig-Zag, 1943)
• Cuentos para ti, Nena (Stories for You, Girl) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1941)
• El mago de Oz: versión autorizada y basada en la película de la Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (The Wizard of Oz: Authorized Version Based on the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Film) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1940)
• El libro de las doce leyendas (The Book of Twelve Legends) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1940)
• Cuentos infantiles en verso (Children's Stories in Verse) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1939)
• Los doce milagros (The Twelve Miracles) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1939)
• El milagro de los ojos (The Miracle of the Eyes) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• Blanca nieves y los siete enanitos (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs) ("Cinesca" version; Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• El libro de las doce leyendas (The Book of Twelve Legends) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1937)

The "Doce Cuentos" Series

Henriette Morvan wrote a popular series of books called "Doce Cuentos" (Twelve Stories). Here are some of them:

• Doce cuentos de príncipes y reyes (Twelve Stories of Princes and Kings) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• Doce cuentos de hadas (Twelve Fairy Tales) (1938)
• Doce Cuentos de Gigantes y enanos (Twelve Stories of Giants and Dwarfs) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1939)
• Doce cuentos de Navidad (Twelve Christmas Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1939)
• Doce Cuentos de encantamiento (Twelve Enchantment Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1939)
• Doce Cuentos de la abuela (Twelve Grandmother's Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• Doce cuentos de oro y plata (Twelve Gold and Silver Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• Doce Cuentos del mar (Twelve Sea Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1938)
• Doce Cuentos de animales (Twelve Animal Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1940)
• Doce Cuentos de juguetes (Twelve Toy Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1943)
• Doce cuentos de recreo y deportes (Twelve Recreation and Sports Stories) (Editorial Zig-Zag, 1944)

See also

In Spanish: Henriette Morvan para niños