Rubem Fonseca

Rubem Fonseca (May 11, 1925 – April 15, 2020) was a Brazilian writer.

Life and career

He was born in Juiz de Fora, in the state of Minas Gerais, but he lived most of his life in Rio de Janeiro. In 1952, he started his career as a low-level cop and, later became a police commissioner, one of the highest ranks in the civil police of Brazil. Following the steps of American novelist Thomas Pynchon, a close friend of Fonseca, he refused to give interviews and felt strongly about maintaining his privacy.

His stories are dark and gritty, filled with violence and sexual content, and usually set in an urban environment. He claimed a writer should have the courage to show what most people are afraid to say. Authors from the rising generation of Brazilian writers, such as Patrícia Melo or Luiz Ruffato, have stated that Fonseca's writing has influenced their work.

In 2003, he won the Camões Prize, considered the most important award in the Portuguese language, and in 2015 he was awarded the Machado de Assis Prize.

In 2012, he became the first recipient of Chile's Manuel Rojas Ibero-American Narrative Award.

He died in Rio de Janeiro in April 2020 at the age of 94.