António Lobo Antunes, one of Portugal's most widely read, sold and translated writers , has died. He was 83.
António Lobo Antunes, an icon of contemporary Portuguese literature, has died, according to his publishing house, the Leya Group.
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He was 83.
With a career spanning more than 40 years, he was one of Portugal's most widely read authors and came to writing after working in medicine and mental health.
Born in Lisbon in September 1942, he graduated from the Faculty of Medicine in Lisbon, where he specialised in psychiatry and practised as a psychiatrist for several years.
His literary career began following his military service in Angola in 1973 during Portugal's Colonial War where he was marked by his experiences as a field doctor.
It was in 1979 that he saw his first books published, "Memory of an Elephant" and "The Land at the End of the World" The following year, "Knowledge of Hell" also hit the stands.
These titles were followed by many others - "Fado Alexandrino" (1983), "As Naus" (1988), "The Inquisitors' Manual" (1996) and "The Splendour of Portugal" (1997), to name but a few - which consolidated his position as one of the most important names in contemporary Portuguese literature.
Since 1985, he devoted himself exclusively to writing, but other recurring themes in his literary heritage have had to do with Portugal's past, from the 'Discoveries' to the Carnation Revolution of April 1974.
Although some of his books have also been inspired by the places that marked his childhood and adolescence, such as the Lisbon neighbourhood of Benfica.
Lobo Antunes's work, which has been translated into several languages, has also received numerous national and international honours over the years, such as the Juan Rulfo Prize in 2008, the Camões Prize in 2007, the Jerusalem Prize in 2005, the Ovid Prize in 2003 and the European Prize for Literature in 2001.
In 2008, he was also awarded the insignia of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture.
