# Alonso Cueto

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{{Short description|Peruvian author, university professor and newspaper columnist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox writer
|image=Cueto,_Alonso_-FILSA_20171029_fRF09.jpg
|caption=Cueto in [FILSA](/source/Santiago_International_Book_Fair) 2017
|birth_name=Alonso Cueto Caballero
|birth_date={{birth date and age|1954|4|30|df=y}}
|birth_place=[Lima](/source/Lima), Peru
|occupation=Writer, journalist, professor
|alma_mater=[Pontifical Catholic University of Peru](/source/Pontifical_Catholic_University_of_Peru)<br>[University of Texas at Austin](/source/University_of_Texas_at_Austin)
|spouse=Kristin Keenan Atwood
|children=2
|notable_works=''[La hora azul](/source/La_Hora_Azul)''<br>''Grandes miradas''<br>''El susurro de la mujer ballena''
|awards=[Premio Herralde](/source/Premio_Herralde) (2005)<br>[Anna Seghers Prize](/source/Anna_Seghers_Prize) (2000)<br>[Guggenheim Fellowship](/source/Guggenheim_Fellowship) (2002)
}}

'''Alonso Cueto Caballero''' (born 30 April 1954 in [Lima](/source/Lima), Peru) is a [Peru](/source/Peru)vian novelist, short story writer, essayist, university professor and newspaper columnist. His writing career has spanned more than four decades, during which he has produced dozens of works of fiction, articles and essays. He has won numerous accolades for his work, and several of his novels have been adapted for film. His novels have been translated into more than seventeen languages.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.asale.org/academico/alonso-cueto-caballero-0|title=Alonso Cueto Caballero – Académico|website=Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

== Biography ==
The son of Peruvian philosopher and educator {{ill|Carlos Cueto Fernandini|es}} and children's literature promoter {{ill|Lilly Caballero de Cueto|es}}, Alonso Cueto spent his early childhood in [Paris](/source/Paris) and [Washington, D.C.](/source/Washington%2C_D.C.), where he attended the Lafayette School (1960–61). He returned to [Lima](/source/Lima) at the age of seven, where he attended the Colegio Carmelitas (1962–70).

Cueto earned a bachelor's degree in literature from the [Pontifical Catholic University of Peru](/source/Pontifical_Catholic_University_of_Peru) in 1977, with a thesis on the poetry of [Emilio Adolfo Westphalen](/source/Emilio_Adolfo_Westphalen). He then traveled to Spain on a scholarship from the Instituto de Cultura Hispánica to research the work of [Luis Cernuda](/source/Luis_Cernuda). In 1979 he enrolled at the [University of Texas at Austin](/source/University_of_Texas_at_Austin), where he obtained a doctorate in 1984 with a thesis on the short stories of [Juan Carlos Onetti](/source/Juan_Carlos_Onetti).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://alonsocueto.com/biografia/|title=Biografía – Alonso Cueto|website=alonsocueto.com|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

He returned to Peru in 1984 and published several books over the succeeding decades. He worked as a columnist for several publications and served as director of ''[El Comercio](/source/El_Comercio_(Peru))'''s ''El Dominical'' Sunday supplement. In 2003, he left ''El Comercio'' to pursue writing and teaching full-time. He is married to Kristin Keenan Atwood and has two sons.

He was elected a member of the [Peruvian Academy of Language](/source/Peruvian_Academy_of_Language) in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apl.org.pe/miembros/|title=Miembros de Número – Academia Peruana de la Lengua|website=apl.org.pe|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

== Writing career ==
Cueto's debut short story collection, ''La batalla del pasado'' ([Alfaguara](/source/Alfaguara), 1983), portrays the lives of exiles in Europe and shows the influence of [Henry James](/source/Henry_James) in its careful exploration of private life and psychological nuance.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://larepublica.pe/archivo/601296-la-batalla-del-pasado/|title=La batalla del pasado|website=larepublica.pe|date=24 May 2019|access-date=31 August 2020}}</ref> His first novel, ''El tigre blanco'' (1985), won the Premio Wiracocha.

His novel ''[Grandes miradas](/source/Grandes_miradas)'' (2003) is set during the dictatorship of [Alberto Fujimori](/source/Alberto_Fujimori) and his adviser [Vladimiro Montesinos](/source/Vladimiro_Montesinos).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/diario/2004/01/11/opinion/1073775607_850215.html|title=Contra la amnesia|last=Vargas Llosa|first=Mario|date=10 January 2004|work=[El País](/source/El_Pa%C3%ADs)|access-date=31 August 2020|issn=1134-6582}}</ref>

In 2005, he published his best-known novel, ''[La hora azul](/source/La_Hora_Azul)'', in which a wealthy lawyer searches for the woman his military father had taken prisoner during the armed struggle between the Peruvian government and [Shining Path](/source/Shining_Path) rebels. [Mario Vargas Llosa](/source/Mario_Vargas_Llosa) called the book "a magnificent novel that lucidly and imaginatively describes the aftermath of 10 years of civil war and terrorism", and [J. M. Coetzee](/source/J._M._Coetzee) described it as "a dark and disturbing novel".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/01/arts/01iht-perulit.html|title=Out of the darkness, a literary renaissance in Peru|date=1 November 2006|work=The New York Times|access-date=29 October 2010}}</ref>The novel won the prestigious [Premio Herralde](/source/Premio_Herralde) in 2005. Its English translation by [Frank Wynne](/source/Frank_Wynne), published as ''The Blue Hour'' (Random House UK, 2012), was shortlisted for the [Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize](/source/Oxford-Weidenfeld_Translation_Prize) and won the [Valle-Inclán Prize](/source/Valle-Incl%C3%A1n_Prize) in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.societyofauthors.org/Prizes/Translation-Prizes/Valle-Inclan/Past-winners|title=Valle Inclán Prize – Past Winners|website=societyofauthors.org|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

Reviewing ''The Blue Hour'' in ''[World Literature Today](/source/World_Literature_Today)'', César Ferreira of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee described it as "a riveting, fast-paced novel" that "starts out as a political thriller and turns into a well-crafted and gripping psychological drama."<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://worldliteraturetoday.org/2014/january/blue-hour-alonso-cueto|title=The Blue Hour|last=Ferreira|first=César|journal=[World Literature Today](/source/World_Literature_Today)|date=January 2014|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref> The ''[Financial Times](/source/Financial_Times)'' wrote that "the conflation of Adrian's personal trauma with his nation's dark history is beautifully, delicately done", while the ''[Times Literary Supplement](/source/Times_Literary_Supplement)'' noted that "Cueto manages to explore that quest both imaginatively and provocatively."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/404910/the-blue-hour-by-alonso-cueto/9780099533092|title=The Blue Hour – Reviews|website=penguin.co.uk|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

''La hora azul'' was followed by two novels forming the ''Redención'' trilogy: ''La pasajera'' and ''La viajera del viento'', which together explore the years of terrorism and political strife in Peru.

In 2019, Cueto won the Premio de Narrativa Alcobendas Juan Goytisolo for his novel ''Palabras de otro lado''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/cultura/2019/04/10/actualidad/1554897301_055020.html|title=Alonso Cueto gana el II Premio de Narrativa Alcobendas Juan Goytisolo con una novela sobre la identidad|last=Galindo|first=Juan Carlos|date=10 April 2019|work=[El País](/source/El_Pa%C3%ADs)|access-date=31 August 2020|issn=1134-6582}}</ref>

In October 2020, the [University of Texas Press](/source/University_of_Texas_Press) published the English version of ''The Wind Traveller'', translated by [Frank Wynne](/source/Frank_Wynne) and Jessie Mendez Sayer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://utpress.utexas.edu/9781477317747/|title=The Wind Traveler|website=utpress.utexas.edu|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref> ''[Publishers Weekly](/source/Publishers_Weekly)'' reviewed the novel positively.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-4773-1774-7|title=The Wind Traveler|website=Publishers Weekly|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

Besides novels, Cueto has written several short story collections and essays as well as a children's book and a play. He also teaches in the Department of Literature at the [Pontifical Catholic University of Peru](/source/Pontifical_Catholic_University_of_Peru) and writes a weekly column for ''[El Comercio](/source/El_Comercio_(Peru))'' newspaper.

Several of Cueto's works have been adapted for film. [Francisco Lombardi](/source/Francisco_Lombardi) based his film ''Mariposa negra'' (2006) on the novel ''Grandes miradas''; it won the [Glauber Rocha](/source/Glauber_Rocha) prize at the [Montreal International Film Festival](/source/Montreal_International_Film_Festival). ''La pasajera'' inspired the film ''Magallanes'' (2015) by director [Salvador del Solar](/source/Salvador_del_Solar), which won the Cine en Construcción award at the [San Sebastián International Film Festival](/source/San_Sebasti%C3%A1n_International_Film_Festival). ''La hora azul'' was adapted into a film of the same name in 2014 by Evelyne Pegot-Ogier.

== Awards and honors ==
* Wiracocha Prize, 1985, for the novel ''El tigre blanco''
* [Anna Seghers Prize](/source/Anna_Seghers_Prize) (Germany), 2000, for his body of work
* [Guggenheim Fellowship](/source/Guggenheim_Fellowship), 2002–2003
* [Premio Herralde](/source/Premio_Herralde), 2005, for ''[La hora azul](/source/La_Hora_Azul)''<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/cultura/2005/11/07/actualidad/1131318001_850215.html|title=El peruano Alonso Cueto gana el premio Herralde de Novela|work=[El País](/source/El_Pa%C3%ADs)|date=7 November 2005|access-date=1 December 2019}}</ref>
* Best Spanish-language novel, Editorial House of the Republic of China, 2004–2005, for ''La hora azul''
* Second place, [Premio Planeta-Casa de América](/source/Premio_Planeta-Casa_de_Am%C3%A9rica), 2007, for ''El susurro de la mujer ballena''
* Elected as member of the [Peruvian Academy of Language](/source/Peruvian_Academy_of_Language), 2009<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apl.org.pe/miembros/|title=Miembros de Número|website=Academia Peruana de la Lengua|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>
* Tribute at the International Book Fair of Lima, 2010
* [Valle-Inclán Prize](/source/Valle-Incl%C3%A1n_Prize) for Translation, 2013, for the English translation of ''La hora azul'' (''The Blue Hour'', translated by [Frank Wynne](/source/Frank_Wynne))<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.societyofauthors.org/Prizes/Translation-Prizes/Valle-Inclan/Past-winners|title=Valle Inclán Prize – Past Winners|website=Society of Authors|access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>
* Recognition for his contribution to culture, Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2017<ref>{{cite web|url=https://peru21.pe/cheka/libros/alonso-cueto-reconocido-personalidad-meritoria-cultura-376736|title=Alonso Cueto fue reconocido como "Personalidad Meritoria de la Cultura"|website=Perú21|date=20 September 2017|access-date=1 December 2019}}</ref>
* Premio de Narrativa Alcobendas Juan Goytisolo, 2019, for ''Palabras de otro lado''<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/cultura/2019/04/10/actualidad/1554897301_055020.html|title=Alonso Cueto gana el II Premio de Narrativa Alcobendas Juan Goytisolo|work=[El País](/source/El_Pa%C3%ADs)|date=10 April 2019|access-date=1 December 2019}}</ref>
* Premio ProArt, 2024, for ''Francisca. Princesa del Perú''

== Works ==
=== Novels ===
* ''El tigre blanco'', Editorial Planeta Peru, 1985
* ''Deseo de noche'', Editorial Apoyo, 1993 (Editorial Pre-Textos, 2003)
* ''El vuelo de la ceniza'', Apoyo, 1995 (Seix Barral, 2007)
* ''Demonio del mediodía'', Peisa, 1999
* ''[Grandes miradas](/source/Grandes_miradas)'', Peisa, 2003 (Editorial Anagrama, 2005; Penguin Random House, 2017)
* ''[La hora azul](/source/La_Hora_Azul)'', Peisa / Anagrama, 2005 (Planeta, 2013; Penguin Random House, 2018)
* ''El susurro de la mujer ballena'', Planeta, 2007
* ''La venganza del silencio'', Planeta, 2010
* ''Cuerpos secretos'', Planeta, 2012
* ''[La pasajera](/source/La_pasajera)'', Seix Barral, 2015
* ''Duelo en la Ciudad de Plata'', Seix Barral, 2015
* ''La viajera del viento'', Planeta, 2016
* ''La segunda amante del rey'', Penguin Random House, 2017
* ''Testamento de sangre'', Penguin Random House, 2018
* ''La Perricholi. Reina de Lima'', Penguin Random House, 2019
* ''Palabras de otro lado'', Galaxia Gutenberg, 2019
* ''Otras caricias'', Penguin Random House, 2021
* ''Francisca. Princesa del Perú'', Penguin Random House, 2023

=== Short story collections ===
* ''La batalla del pasado'', [Alfaguara](/source/Alfaguara), Madrid, 1983 (Editorial Apoyo, 1996; Alfaguara Juvenil Perú, 2011)
* ''Los vestidos de una dama'', Editorial Peisa, Lima, 1987 (1998)
* ''Amores de invierno'', Apoyo, 1994 (Planeta, 2006)
* ''Cinco para las nueve y otros cuentos'', Alfaguara, Lima, 1996 (Barcelona Digital Editions, 2014)
* ''Pálido cielo'', Peisa, 1998 (Norma, 2010)
* ''El otro amor de Diana Abril'', Peisa, 2002
* ''Lágrimas artificiales / Dalia y los perros'', Peisa, 2014

=== Essays and non-fiction ===
* ''Mario Vargas Llosa. La vida en movimiento'', Fondo Editorial de la UPC, 2003
* ''Valses, rajes y cortejos'', Peisa, 2005
* ''Sueños reales'', Seix Barral, 2008
* ''Juan Carlos Onetti. El soñador en la penumbra'', Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2009
* ''La piel de un escritor'', Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2014
* ''Diario Los Años'', Ediciones Cueto, 2023

=== Children's books and other ===
* ''El árbol del tesoro'', Planeta, 2011
* ''Encuentro casual'' (play), Peisa, 2002

== English translations ==

* ''[The blue hour](/source/The_Blue_Hour_(novel))'', Random House UK (April, 2014)
* [https://utpress.utexas.edu/9781477317747/ The wind traveler], University of Texas Press (October, 2020)

== Film Adaptations ==
His novel ''Grandes Miradas'' was adapted into a movie (''Mariposa Negra'') by Francisco Lombardi in 2006. Cueto's novel ''La Hora Azul/[The Blue Hour](/source/The_Blue_Hour_(book))'' which won the [Herralde Prize](/source/Herralde_Prize) in 2006.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/01/arts/01iht-perulit.html|title=Out of the darkness, a literary renaissance in Peru|date=1 November 2006|work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)|accessdate=29 October 2010}}</ref>  was published in English in 2012 (translated by [Frank Wynne](/source/Frank_Wynne)) and was shortlisted for the 2013 [Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize](/source/Oxford-Weidenfeld_Translation_Prize) and won the [Valle Inclán Prize](/source/Valle-Incl%C3%A1n_Prize) in 2013.

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://alonsocueto.com Official website of Alonso Cueto]
* [https://www.loc.gov/item/2016686128 Alonso Cueto recorded at the Library of Congress for the Hispanic Division's audio literary archive on March 15, 2015]
* [https://worldliteraturetoday.org/2014/january/blue-hour-alonso-cueto Review of ''The Blue Hour'' in World Literature Today]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cueto, Alonso}}
Category:1954 births
Category:Living people
Category:Peruvian novelists
Category:Peruvian male novelists
Category:Peruvian columnists
Category:Writers from Lima
Category:Pontifical Catholic University of Peru alumni
Category:University of Texas at Austin alumni

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Alonso Cueto](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alonso_Cueto) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alonso_Cueto?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.