Kurtz, Carmen (1911—)

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Kurtz, Carmen (1911—)

Award-winning Spanish author of children's literature. Name variations: Carmen de Rafael y Marés Kurtz. Born Carmen de Rafael y Marés in Barcelona, Spain, on September 18, 1911; married Pedro Kurtz Klein, in 1935; children: one daughter.

Born on September 18, 1911, a native of Barcelona, Carmen de Rafael y Marés married Pedro Kurtz Klein in 1935 and moved to France that year, on the eve of the Spanish Civil War. She returned to Spain only in 1943, during the Second World War. Between 1954 and 1964, she published nine novels, using her husband's surname. In the 1960s, she also turned to children's literature in the 1960s. Many of those works featured the protagonist Oscar, who experienced a great variety of adventures, including espionage, space travel, and exploring the Himalayas. Her children's books won the Lazarillo Prize in 1964 and the Children's Literature Prize of the Spanish Catholic Commission in 1964 and 1967.

Kendall W. Brown , Provo, Utah