Marta Rivera de la Cruz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Marta Rivera de la Cruz MP
Regional Minister of Culture and Tourism
In office 20 August 2019 – 10 March 2021
President	Isabel Díaz Ayuso
Preceded by	Jaime de los Santos
Succeeded by	Enrique Ossorio (acting)
Regional Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sports
In office 21 June 2021 – 22 June 2023
President	Isabel Díaz Ayuso
Preceded by	Enrique Ossorio (acting)
Succeeded by	Mariano de Paco Serrano
Personal details
Born	(1970-09-16)16 September 1970 Lugo, Galicia, Spain
Occupation	Novelist

Marta Rivera de la Cruz is a Spanish writer and politician. She was born in Lugo, Spain, in 1970. She is a member of the People's Party. In 2023, she was elected to the Spanish Parliament, representing Madrid.

About Marta Rivera de la Cruz

Early Life and Education

Marta Rivera de la Cruz grew up in a family where many people were journalists. When she was 18, she moved to Madrid. There, she studied information science at the Complutense University. She also spent some time studying at Oxford University in England on a special scholarship. She still lives in Madrid today.

Starting Her Writing Career

Marta began her journey as a writer in 1996. Her first novel, El refugio (The Refuge), won an award called the Premio de Novela Corta Joven y Brillante. Just two years later, in 1998, she won another award, the Premio Ateneo of Seville, for her novel Que veinte años no es nada (Twenty Years is Nothing). This book was very popular and was printed five times!

In 2000, Marta published two more novels. These were Linus Daff, inventor de historias (Linus Daff, Inventor of Stories) and Viajar a Chipre (Traveling to Cyprus).

Different Kinds of Writing

Besides writing novels, Marta Rivera de la Cruz has also written essays. Essays are like non-fiction books that explore a specific topic. In 2001, she published a book of essays called Fiestas que hicieron historia (Fiestas That Made History). She has also written short stories, such as "El beso del andén" (The Kiss of the Platform).

In 2002, her novel Hotel Almirante (Admiral Hotel) was released. This story is about finding a young woman's body in a fancy hotel. The next year, 2003, she published another essay collection, Tristezas de amor (Sadnesses of Love). She also wrote Grandes de España (Great People of Spain), which is a biography.

Notable Works and Contributions

One of her most well-known novels is En tiempo de prodigios (In the Time of Wonders), which was a runner-up for the Premio Planeta award in 2006. This novel tells the story of a woman named Cecilia. She finds the true meaning of life through stories told by her best friend's grandfather, Silvio. Silvio has a secret past as a spy during World War II.

Beyond her own books, Marta has worked as an editor. She helped put together a collection of stories called Cuentos de Navidad (Christmas Stories). She also worked on a new edition of a book by Alejo Carpentier called La ciudad de las columnas (The City of Columns).

Marta has also worked in other media. She wrote for El País Semanal, which is a Sunday magazine for the newspaper El País. She also worked on a radio show called Al sur de la semana. She writes articles about Spanish-American literature and other topics for different literary magazines in Spain and North America. She also edited the Galician literature section for the magazine Leer.

Political Career

Marta Rivera de la Cruz has held important political roles in the Government of the Community of Madrid. From 2019 to 2021, she served as the Regional Minister of Culture and Tourism. Later, from 2021 to 2023, she was the Regional Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sports. In both roles, she worked under President Isabel Díaz Ayuso. In 2023, she was elected as a Member of Parliament for Madrid.

Marta Rivera de la Cruz's Books

Novels

• El Refugio (1996). This book won the II Premio Novela Corta Joven y Brillante.
• La segunda vida de Antonio Bénitez Reino (Lugo, 1997).
• Que veinte años no es nada (Seville, 1998). This book won the II Premio Ateneo Joven de Sevilla de Novela.
• Linus Daff, inventor de historias (Barcelona, 2000).
• Viajar a Chipre (Barcelona, 2000).
• Hotel Almirante (Madrid, 2002).
• En tiempo de prodigios (Madrid, 2006). This book was a runner-up for the Premio Planeta.
• La vida despues (Barcelona 2011).
• La boda de Kate
• Nosotros, los de entonces

Essays

• Fiestas que hicieron historia (Madrid, 2001).
• Tristezas de amor (Madrid, 2003).

Biographies

• Grandes de España (Madrid, 2004).

Other Works

• "El beso del andén" (Madrid, 2001), a story found in the collection Sobre raíles.

See also

In Spanish: Marta Rivera de la Cruz para niños