Elvira Lindo (born 23 January 1962 in

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

) is a Spanish

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

. At the age of 12 Lindo moved to

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, where she studied journalism at

Complutense University of Madrid The Complutense University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid; UCM, links=no, ''Universidad de Madrid'', ''Universidad Central de Madrid''; la, Universitas Complutensis Matritensis, links=no) is a public research university loca ...

. She did not get her degree, as she began to work in television and radio as a speaker, actress and scriptwriter. Her first novel was based on one of her fictional radio characters, the

madrileño Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

boy ''Manolito Gafotas'', who has become a classic of Spanish

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

. Manolito is the son of a trucker and lives a humble life in the

working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

quarter of

Carabanchel Carabanchel is a district of Madrid, Spain. It lies on the southern (right) bank of the Manzanares, spanning southward down to the M-40 ring road. The district is made up of the neighbourhoods of Abrantes, Comillas, Opañel, Puerta Bonita, San ...

. The character was the protagonist of several first-person novels written with a solid style that includes

humour Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...

irony Irony (), in its broadest sense, is the juxtaposition of what on the surface appears to be the case and what is actually the case or to be expected; it is an important rhetorical device and literary technique. Irony can be categorized into ...

and sharp

social criticism Social criticism is a form of academic or journalistic criticism focusing on social issues in contemporary society, in particular with respect to perceived injustices and power relations in general. Social criticism of the Enlightenment The orig ...

. Lindo has also written adult novels and plays; she is the screenwriter of the film ''La primera noche de mi vida'', and collaborated with director

Miguel Albaladejo Miguel Albaladejo (Pilar de la Horadada, Alicante, 20 August 1966) is a Spanish screenwriter and film director. Filmography as film director * ''The First Night of My Life'' (1998), made for 2000, Seen By...Norbert Creutz,Dix cinéastes de quatre ...

on the screenplays for ''

Manolito Gafotas ''Manolito Gafotas'' is a 1994 children's novel written by the Spanish writer Elvira Lindo and illustrated by Emilio Urberuaga. It is the first of a series of novels about the adventures of a working class kid in Carabanchel that inspired two mov ...

'' and ''Ataque verbal''. She also adapted the screenplay ''Plenilunio'' from the novel by her husband,

Antonio Muñoz Molina Antonio Muñoz Molina (born 10 January 1956) is a Spanish writer and, since 8 June 1995, a full member of the Royal Spanish Academy. He received the 1991 Premio Planeta, the 2013 Jerusalem Prize, and the 2013 Prince of Asturias Award for lit ...

. Ever since her husband

was appointed director of the

Instituto Cervantes Instituto Cervantes (the Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide nonprofit organization created by the government of Spain, Spanish government in 1991. It is named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of ''Don Quixote'' and perhaps the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Lindo has lived in New York City. She often writes for the Spanish-language newspaper ''

El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...

'', contributing editorials, and writes freelance work for other magazines and newspapers. In 1998 Lindo was awarded the ''Premio Nacional de Literatura Infantil y Juvenil'' (National Award for Children's and Youth Literature) for her book ''Los trapos sucios de Manolito Gafotas'', and she received the

Premio Biblioteca Breve The Premio Biblioteca Breve is a literary award given annually by the publisher Seix Barral (now part of Grupo Planeta) to an unpublished novel in the Spanish language. Its prize is €30,000 and publication of the winning work. It is delivered in ...

for her adult novel ''Una palabra tuya''. Her next book, ''Lo que me queda por vivir'' was released on 3 September 2010.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindo, Elvira 1962 births Living people People from Cádiz Spanish women writers Spanish women journalists El País columnists 21st-century Spanish screenwriters