Benjamin Alire Sáenz
 |
Benjamin Alire Sáenz | |
|---|---|
 Sáenz in 2016 | |
| 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
Sáenz was born in Old Picacho, New Mexico, and raised on a cotton farm in Mesilla, New Mexico, near Las Cruces. 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. 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.
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.
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.
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.
Sáenz died on July 28, 2026, at the age of 71.
Awards
 | This section needs more citations. (August 2026) |
- Wallace E. Stegner Fellowship, poetry
- 1992 American Book Award, for Calendar of Dust
- Lannan Literary Award for Poetry 1993
- Carry Me Like Water, Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association)
- Dark and Perfect Angels, Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association)
- Grandma Fina and Her Wonderful Umbrellas, Book Publishers of Texas Award for Best Book for Children or Young People 2000, Texas Institute of Letters
- Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood, Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature, the Paterson Book Prize, the J Hunt Award, Finalist Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Fiction, Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults
- He Forgot to Say Goodbye. Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award; Southwest Book Award (Border Regional Library Association); Chicago Public Library, Best of the Best Books for Teens; New York Public Library Stuff for the Teen 2009; Commended Title, Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature 2009
- A Perfect Season for Dreaming, Friends of the Austin Public Library Award for Best Children's Book, 2008 (Texas Institute of Letters), 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; Honor Book, Michael L. Printz Award, 2013; Pura Belpré Award, 2013.
Works
- "Students I See Every Day", Santa Fe Poetry Broadside, Issue #31, February, 2003
- Do Not Mind the Bombs, Narrative Magazine
Poetry
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
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
