Isabel Allende Wins €1m Literary Prize Under Pseudonym
The 84-year-old author's winning novel, La hora antes del alba, is a sequel to her 1982 debut The House of the Spirits and was submitted under the pseudonym Luz Ventura
Isabel Allende has won the €1m Premio Planeta Spanish literary prize under a pseudonym for her novel La hora antes del alba, a sequel to her 1982 novel The House of the Spirits. The prize, which is one of the world's most lucrative literary awards, was awarded in its 75th edition.
The winning novel, La hora antes del alba, follows Alba, the granddaughter of Esteban Trueba and Clara del Valle, as she tries to recover from imprisonment and torture during Pinochet's dictatorship. Allende entered the competition under the pseudonym Luz Ventura with the fictional title Los que faltan.
The award ceremony was attended by King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia. Allende, who was 84 years old when she won the prize, said it was “like winning the Nobel”. She had never entered a competition before, but was prompted to write the sequel by decades of readers asking what happened to Alba.
Isabel Allende's books have sold more than 80m copies worldwide and been translated into more than 40 languages. The Premio Planeta is open to unpublished manuscripts, with the option of submitting under a pseudonym.
## Why it matters The prize is significant not only for its monetary value but also for its recognition of literary excellence. Allende's win is a testament to her enduring talent and the impact of her writing on readers worldwide. The fact that she was able to win under a pseudonym also highlights the integrity of the competition and the emphasis on the quality of the writing rather than the author's reputation.
The win also comes at a time when Allende's work is particularly relevant, with the rise of extremism and authoritarianism in many parts of the world. Allende's experiences as an exile and her writing about the human cost of political upheaval continue to resonate with readers today.
