Benjamin Alire Sáenz
(Redirected from Benjamin Alire Saenz)
 |
Benjamin Alire Sáenz | |
|---|---|
 Sáenz at the 2016 Texas Book Festival | |
| Born | August 16, 1954 Old Picacho, New Mexico, U.S. |
| Died | July 28, 2026 (aged 71) |
| Education | St. Thomas Seminary (BA) University of Texas at El Paso (MA) |
| Writing career | |
| Language | English |
| Period | 1990s–2026 |
| Genres | Novels, short stories, poetry, young adult literature |
| Subjects | Hispanic and Latino American culture, LGBT |
| Notable works | Carry Me Like Water, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, The Inexplicable Logic of My Life, Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club |
| Notable awards | American Book Award (1992) PEN/Faulkner Award (2013) |
Benjamin Alire Sáenz (August 16, 1954 – July 28, 2026) was an American poet, novelist and writer of children's books.
Life and career
[edit]Sáenz was born in Old Picacho, New Mexico, and raised on a cotton farm in Mesilla, New Mexico, near Las Cruces.[1][2] He earned a BA in Humanities and Philosophy from St. Thomas Seminary in Denver, Colorado, and a MA in creative writing from the University of Texas at El Paso. He continued to live and work in El Paso, Texas.[3] After 15 years of marriage to his wife, an El Paso family court judge, he came out as gay, and they filed for divorce in 2009.[1]
Sáenz was 54 when he came out. In an interview, he confirmed that he had struggled with this topic for a long time and that he saw writing as a way to overcome it.[4]
In 2013, Benjamin Alire Sáenz became the first Latino to win the prestigious PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction with Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club.[5]
On October 29, 2022, Sáenz received the Inaugural Hummingbird Award in Literary Arts from the Tulsa City-County Library. The event was hosted by the Tulsa City-County Library and the Hispanic Resource Center.[6]
Sáenz died on July 28, 2026, at the age of 71.[7]
Awards
[edit] | This section needs more citations. (August 2026) |
- Wallace E. Stegner Fellowship, poetry[8]
- 1992 American Book Award, for Calendar of Dust[2]
- Lannan Literary Award for Poetry 1993[9]
- Carry Me Like Water, Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association)[10]
- Dark and Perfect Angels, Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association)[3]
- Grandma Fina and Her Wonderful Umbrellas, Book Publishers of Texas Award for Best Book for Children or Young People 2000, Texas Institute of Letters[11]
- Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood, Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature,[12] the Paterson Book Prize, the J Hunt Award, Finalist Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Fiction,[13] Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults[14]
- He Forgot to Say Goodbye. Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award;[15] Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association); Chicago Public Library, Best of the Best Books for Teens;[16] New York Public Library Stuff for the Teen 2009; Commended Title, Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature 2009[17]
- A Perfect Season for Dreaming, Friends of the Austin Public Library Award for Best Children's Book, 2008 (Texas Institute of Letters),[11] Bank Street Best Children's Books of the Year 2008, Kirkus Review 2008 Notable Books for Children, Paterson Book Prize
- Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Stonewall Book Award-Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children's and Young Adult Literature Award, 2013;[18] Honor Book, Michael L. Printz Award, 2013;[19] Pura Belpré Award, 2013.[20]
Works
[edit]- "Students I See Every Day", Santa Fe Poetry Broadside, Issue #31, February, 2003
- Do Not Mind the Bombs, Narrative Magazine
Poetry
[edit]- Calendar of Dust. Broken Moon Press. 1991. ISBN 978-0-913089-16-3.
- Dark and Perfect Angels. Cinco Puntos Press. 1995. ISBN 978-0-938317-23-4.
- Elegies in Blue. Cinco Puntos Press. 2002. ISBN 978-0-938317-64-7.
- Dreaming the End of War. Copper Canyon Press. 2006. ISBN 978-1-55659-239-3.
- The Book of What Remains. Copper Canyon Press. 2010. ISBN 978-1-55659-297-3.
Short stories
[edit]- Flowers for the Broken. Broken Moon Press. 1992. ISBN 978-0-913089-28-6.
- Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club. Cinco Puntos Press. 2012. ISBN 9781935955320.
Novels
[edit]- Carry Me Like Water, Hyperion, 1995
- The House of Forgetting. HarperCollins. 1997.
- In Perfect Light. HarperCollins. 2008. ISBN 978-0-06-077921-4.
- En el tiempo de la Luz, Rayo/HarperCollins 2006
- Names on a Map. Harper Perennial. 2008. ISBN 978-0-06-128569-1.
Young-adult novels
[edit]- Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood. Cinco Puntos Press. 2004. ISBN 978-0-938317-81-4.
- He Forgot to Say Goodbye. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. 2008-06-17. ISBN 978-1-4169-4963-3.
- Last Night I Sang to the Monster, Cinco Puntos Press 2009
- Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2012
- The Inexplicable Logic of My Life, Clarion Books, 2017
- Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2021
Children's books
[edit]- A Gift from Papa Diego. Bt Bound. 1999. ISBN 978-0-613-06587-0.
- Grandma Fina and Her Wonderful Umbrellas. Illustrator Geronimo Garcia. Cinco Puntos Press. 2001. ISBN 978-0-938317-61-6.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - A Perfect Season for Dreaming, Cinco Puntos Press 2008.
- The Dog Who Loved Tortillas, Cinco Puntos Press 2009
Anthologies
[edit]- Dagoberto Gilb, ed. (2008). "The Unchronicled Death of Your Holy Father; Fences". Hecho en Tejas: An Anthology of Texas-Mexican Literature. UNM Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-4126-6.
- X. J. Kennedy; Dana Gioia, eds. (2005). An introduction to poetry. Pearson Longman. ISBN 978-0-321-20939-9.
- "To the Desert," "Resurrections," Twentieth Century American Poetry (2004), edited by Dana Gioia, McGraw Hill ISBN 0-07-240019-6
References
[edit]- 1 2 Ballí, Cecilia (August 2013). "The Passion of Benjamin Sáenz". Texas Monthly. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
- 1 2 Longman, Jeré (August 28, 2026). "Benjamin Alire Sáenz, First Latino Writer to Win PEN/Faulkner, Dies at 71". The New York Times. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- 1 2 "Benjamin Alire Sáenz". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Discovering Sexuality Through Teen Lit". NPR.org. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
- ↑ "Winner & Finalists for 2013 Award for Fiction | The PEN/Faulkner Foundation". www.penfaulkner.org. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
- ↑ "Hummingbird Award in Literary Arts". Tulsa City-County Library. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
- ↑ Ramirez, Cindy; Moore, Robert. "Renowned El Paso author, artist Benjamin Alire Sáenz dies at 71". El Paso Matters. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Former Stegner Fellows". Stanford Creative Writing Program. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Benjamin Alire Sáenz". Lannan. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Benjamin Alire Sáenz". Texas Cultural Trust. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
- 1 2 "Awards 2000-2009". Texas Institute of Letters. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Award Winners". CLASP Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "2004 Times Book Prize finalists". Los Angeles Times. April 17, 2005. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults for 2005". American Library Association. Retrieved August 28, 2026.
- ↑ "2009 Book Award Winners". Texas State University, College of Education. Retrieved August 29, 2026.
- ↑ "Best Teen Fiction of 2008". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved August 29, 2026.
- ↑ "2009 Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature" (PDF). CLASP Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs. 2009. p. 5. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
- ↑ "Stonewall Book Awards List". American Library Association. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
- ↑ "Michael L. Printz Winners and Honor Books". American Library Association. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
- ↑ "Pura Belpré Award and Honor Books, 1996 to present" (PDF). American Library Association. Retrieved August 30, 2026.
External links
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Benjamin Alire Sáenz.
- Benjamin Alire Sáenz official page at Simon & Schuster, Inc.
- Benjamin Alire Sáenz Archived 2020-10-31 at the Wayback Machine official page at Cinco Puntos Press
- Benjamin Alire Sáenz at the Library of Congress, with 22 library catalog records
- Benjamin Alire Sáenz at IMDb
Categories:
- 1954 births
- 2026 deaths
- 20th-century American novelists
- 20th-century American poets
- 20th-century American short story writers
- 21st-century American novelists
- 21st-century American poets
- 21st-century American short story writers
- American children's writers
- American writers of young adult literature
- 20th-century American male poets
- American male short story writers
- American writers of Mexican descent
- American gay writers
- Hispanic and Latino American novelists
- Hispanic and Latino American poets
- Lambda Literary Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature winners
- Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction winners
- Stonewall Book Award winners
- Hispanic and Latino American LGBTQ people
- American LGBTQ novelists
- American LGBTQ poets
- LGBTQ people from New Mexico
- PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction winners
- People from Doña Ana County, New Mexico
- Poets from Texas
- Poets from New Mexico
- Stanford University alumni
- University of Iowa alumni
- University of Texas at El Paso alumni
- University of Texas at El Paso faculty
- Writers from El Paso, Texas
- Writers from New Mexico
- Novelists from Texas
- American Book Award winners
- 20th-century American male novelists
- 21st-century American LGBTQ people
- Gay poets
- 21st-century American male poets