Rachel de Queiroz (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁaˈkɛw dʒi ˈkejɾɔs], November 17, 1910 – November 4, 2003) was a Brazilian author, translator and journalist.
Rachel de Queiroz
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Rachel de Queiroz (1971), from the collection of the Brazilian National Archives
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| Born | (1910-11-17)November 17, 1910 Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil |
| Died | November 4, 2003(2003-11-04) (aged 92) Leblon, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Pen name | Rita de Queiroz |
| Notable works | O Quinze |
| Notable awards |
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Rachel de Queiroz was born on 17 November 1910 in Fortaleza, capital of the northeastern state of Ceará.[1] During her childhood, her family spent a couple of years in Rio de Janeiro and Belém before moving back to Fortaleza.[1]
She began her career in journalism in 1927 under the pen name "Rita de Queiroz".[1] She entered the national spotlight with the unexpected success of her debut novel O Quinze in 1930.[1] She published another three novels before moving to Rio in 1939.[2] She was also renowned for her chronicles, short topical newspaper pieces.[3]
De Queiroz joined the Brazilian Communist Party in the 1930s; she was arrested by the Getulio Vargas police in 1937;[4] she would break off with the party later that decade. In 1964 she supported the Brazilian military coup d'état.[5]
In 1964 she became Brazil's representative to the UN, and in 1977 she became the first female writer to enter the Academia Brasileira de Letras. She won the Camões Prize (1993) and the Prêmio Jabuti.[citation needed]
She died of a heart attack in her apartment in Leblon, Rio de Janeiro on 4 November 2003, about two weeks before her 93rd birthday.[2]
The Brazilian Marines' base in the UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) is named after her.[citation needed]
Her election, on November 4, 1977, to seat 5 of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, caused some excitement among the feminists of the time. In an interview, she declared: I did not join the ABL because I was a woman. I joined because, regardless of that, I have a work. I have dear friends here. Almost all my friends are men, I don't trust women very much.[citation needed]
Received by Adonias Filho, she was the fifth occupant of the chair whose patron is Bernardo Guimarães.[citation needed]
Her novel O Quinze was made into a film in 2004.[6]
On November 17, 2017, Google celebrated her 107th birthday with a Google Doodle.[7]
