Manuel Vázquez Montalbán facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán
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| Born | Manuel Vázquez Montalbán 14 June 1939 Barcelona, Spain |
| Died | 18 October 2003 (aged 64) Bangkok, Thailand |
| Occupation | Author |
| Language | Spanish |
| Nationality | Spaniard |
| Citizenship | Spaniard |
| Notable works | Pepe Carvalho |
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán (born June 14, 1939 – died October 18, 2003) was a very active Spanish writer from Barcelona. He was many things: a journalist, a novelist, a poet, and someone who wrote essays (non-fiction articles). He was also a humorist, a critic, and even spent time in prison for his political actions. Besides writing, he loved food and was a big fan of the FC Barcelona football team.
Contents
About Manuel Vázquez Montalbán
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán was born in Barcelona, Spain, on June 14, 1939. He studied philosophy at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. He was also part of a political group called the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia. In 1962, he took part in a miners' strike. Because of this, he was sent to prison for 18 months.
He started writing poetry in 1967. His poems from before 1986 are collected in a book called Memoria y deseo (which means "Memory and desire").
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán also wrote many novels. One of his most famous books is Los mares del Sur (The Southern Seas). This book won an important award called the Planeta Award in 1979. It made him and his fictional detective character, Pepe Carvalho, very famous. Pepe Carvalho later appeared in movies, TV shows, and comic books.
In 1988, Manuel Vázquez Montalbán wrote a children's book. It was called Escenas de la Literatura Universal y Retratos de Grandes Autores. This book was full of fun facts and information about famous writers from around the world. It included pictures by Willi Glasauer. Some of the writers featured were William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes, and Agatha Christie.
He wrote other important novels too, like Galíndez (1991), which won the National Narrative Award. He also wrote El estrangulador (The Strangler) in 1994 and Erec y Enide (2002). In 1992, he published Autobiografía del general Franco, which won an international prize. For many years, he also wrote articles for a newspaper in Madrid called El País.
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán passed away in Bangkok, Thailand, on October 18, 2003. He was returning home from a trip where he gave speeches in Australia. His last book, La aznaridad, was published after he died.
Detective Pepe Carvalho
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán is very well known for his series of detective novels featuring Pepe Carvalho. Pepe Carvalho is a detective who is also a big fan of food. He is 50 years old in the first book.
The first novel with Pepe Carvalho was Yo maté a Kennedy (I Killed Kennedy), published in 1972. After that came Tatuaje (Tattoo) in 1975 and La soledad del manager (The Angst-Ridden Executive) in 1977.
Here are some other books in the Pepe Carvalho series:
- Los mares del Sur (The Southern Seas) 1979
- Asesinato en el Comité Central (Murder in the Central Committee) 1981
- Los pájaros de Bangkok (The Birds of Bangkok) 1983
- La rosa de Alejandría (Alexandria's Rose) 1984
- El balneario (The Spa) 1986
- El delantero centro fue asesinado al atardecer (Offside) 1989
- El laberinto griego (The Greek Labyrinth) 1991
- Sabotaje olímpico (Olympic Sabotage) 1993
- El hermano pequeño (The Little Brother) 1994
- El Premio (The Prize) 1996
- Quinteto de Buenos Aires (Buenos Aires Quintet) 1997
- El hombre de mi vida (The Man of My Life) 2000
- Milenio Carvalho (Carvalho Millennium) 2004 (published in two parts)
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán and Food
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán was also a "gastronome." This means he was an expert and a lover of good food. You can find many references to food in all the Pepe Carvalho novels. Sometimes, the books even include recipes! For example, Carvalho makes a special "rice tagliatelle fideuà" in Los pájaros de Bangkok.
He shared his deep knowledge of food in his book Contra los Gourmets (Against Gourmets). This book helps people learn about the world of cooking. It focuses on Spanish cuisine but also talks about food from other countries. He also wrote about different eating trends, like "healthy food." Other food-related books by Montalbán include L'art del menjar a Catalunya (Catalan Cooking) and Recetas inmorales (Immoral Recipes).
Essays and Other Writings
Manuel Vázquez Montalbán wrote many essays. Essays are non-fiction writings where an author shares their thoughts on a topic. He wrote about many different subjects. These included journalism, politics, history, sports, and music.
His first essay, Informe sobre la Información (Report about Information) from 1963, is still considered an important study on journalism in Spain.
Some of his other notable essays include:
- Crónica sentimental de España (Sentimental Chronicle of Spain), 1971
- Joan Manuel Serrat, 1972 (about a famous singer)
- El libro gris de Televisión Española (The Grey TV Book), 1973 (about Spanish television)
- Diccionario del Franquismo (Dictionary of the Franco times), 1977 (about a period in Spanish history)
- Un polaco en la corte del rey Juan Carlos (A Pole in the Court of King Juan Carlos), 1996 (an analysis of politics in Madrid)
- Y Dios entró en La Habana (And God entered La Habana), 1998 (about Cuba, Fidel Castro, and the visit of Pope John Paul II)
Awards in His Name
To remember Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, two special awards have been created in his honor since 2004. These are given by the FC Barcelona Foundation and the Catalan College of Journalists.
The awards are given in two main areas:
- Sport Journalism (for writing about sports).
- Cultural and/or Political Journalism (for writing about culture or politics).
Also, a famous Italian writer named Andrea Camilleri created a detective character named Salvo Montalbano. He named this character after Manuel Vázquez Montalbán to show his respect.
See also
In Spanish: Manuel Vázquez Montalbán para niños
