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Entertainment | Books | June 2007
Mexico's Poniatowska Wins Lit Prize Associated Press go to original
Caracas, Venezuela - Mexican writer Elena Poniatowska received the prestigious Romulo Gallegos literature prize Tuesday for her novel "El Tren Pasa Primero" ("The Train Passes First").
The book tells the story of a railroad worker who becomes immersed in the struggle for labor rights in Mexico.
"I've always been involved in my country's problems," said Poniatowska, a journalist and political activist who was born in Paris and has lived in Mexico since 1942.
"When one gets to be 75 years old like me, it is wonderful to arrive at this culmination," she said. The prize "is a reward, a recognition in my case of all the work, because I'm a journalist and writer. It is an award for all Latin America ... and an enormous pleasure."
Created in 1967 and named after Venezuelan novelist and former President Romulo Gallegos, the prize is awarded every two years for what is judged the best Spanish-language novel.
Past winners include Peruvian Mario Vargas Llosa in 1967 for "The Green House" and Colombian Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1972 for "One Hundred Years of Solitude." Spanish writer Isaac Rosa received the prize in 2005. |
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