São Paulo Prize for Literature
2 appearances
-
Edition 11 (2018) Winner
-
Edition 12 (2019) Winner
Ana Paula Maia
アナ・パウラ・マイア
Ana Paula Maia
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1977-01-01 （Nova Iguaçu, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil）
- Nationality
- Brazilian
- Languages
- Portuguese
Career
- Occupations
- writer, screenwriter
- Active Years
- 2003-
- Influenced By
- Fyodor Dostoevsky, Edgar Allan Poe, Quentin Tarantino, Sergio Leone
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | Computer Science | — | — | Brazil |
| — | — | Communication Science | — | — | Brazil |
—
Computer Science
Country:
Brazil
Sources state she graduated in computer science and communication science; specific institutions not provided.
—
Communication Science
Country:
Brazil
Sources state she graduated in computer science and communication science; specific institutions not provided.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | São Paulo Prize for Literature (Best Novel) | On Earth As It Is Beneath (Assim na Terra como embaixo da Terra) | Best Novel | São Paulo Prize for Literature | Winner |
| 2019 | São Paulo Prize for Literature (Best Novel) | Bury Your Dead (Enterre Seus Mortos) | Best Novel | São Paulo Prize for Literature | Winner |
São Paulo Prize for Literature (Best Novel)
2018
Work:
On Earth As It Is Beneath (Assim na Terra como embaixo da Terra)
Category:
Best Novel
Organization:
São Paulo Prize for Literature
Result:
Winner
São Paulo Prize for Literature (Best Novel)
2019
Work:
Bury Your Dead (Enterre Seus Mortos)
Category:
Best Novel
Organization:
São Paulo Prize for Literature
Result:
Winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
O habitante das falhas subterrâneas
2003 NovelPublished 2003. A collection/early novel that introduces themes of subterranean worlds and laborers that recur in her later work.
laborsubterranean worldviolence
Saga of Brutes
2009 Short novels/trilogyA trilogy that began with short novels Between Dog Fights and Hog Slaughter and The Dirty Work of Others (published together) and concluded with Carvão Animal; explores workers, brutality and harsh daily life.
laborviolencemale-centered perspective
Adaptations
Translations
- Saga of Brutes, trans. Alexandra Joy Forman (Dalkey Archive Press, 2016)
Of Cattle and Men
2013 NovelA novel portraying people involved with livestock and farm labor; introduced to English readers via translation.
livestocklaborsocial marginality
Translations
- Of Cattle and Men, trans. Zoë Perry (Charco Press, 2023)
On Earth As It Is Beneath
2017 NovelPublished 2017. A novel set against coal/industrial labor backgrounds depicting raw human behavior and harsh lives. Winner of the São Paulo Prize for Literature in 2018.
coal mininglaborviolence
Translations
- On Earth As It Is Beneath, trans. Padma Viswanathan (Charco Press, 2025)
Bury Your Dead
2018 NovelPublished 2018. A story about people living at the margins of urban labor; winner of the São Paulo Prize for Literature in 2019.
deathurban marginslabor
Translations
- Bury Your Dead, trans. Padma Viswanathan (Charco Press, forthcoming 2026)
De cada quinhentos uma alma
2021 NovelPublished 2021. One of her recent works continuing themes of workers and marginalized people.
isolationlaborsocial marginality
Búfalos selvagens
2024 NovelPublished 2024. A recent novel that continues earlier themes while exploring new settings (details limited).
natureviolencelabor
Bibliography
- O habitante das falhas subterrâneas (2003)
- A Guerra dos Bastardos (2007)
- Saga of Brutes (2009-2011)
- De Gados e Homens (2013)
- Assim na Terra como embaixo da Terra (2017)
- Enterre Seus Mortos (2018)
- De cada quinhentos uma alma (2021)
- Búfalos selvagens (2024)
Translations of Works
- Saga of Brutes, trans. Alexandra Joy Forman (Dalkey Archive Press, 2016)
- Of Cattle and Men, trans. Zoë Perry (Charco Press, 2023)
- On Earth As It Is Beneath, trans. Padma Viswanathan (Charco Press, 2025)
- Bury Your Dead, trans. Padma Viswanathan (Charco Press, forthcoming 2026)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- concise, visceral prosepulp/noir elementsinfluences from Western films
- Recurring Motifs
- male perspectivedangerous essential labor (garbage collectors, coal miners, slaughterhouse workers)violence and deathmarginalized people
Legacy
Ana Paula Maia has established a distinctive place in contemporary Brazilian literature with her raw, forceful prose depicting workers and marginal spaces. She gained high domestic recognition with consecutive São Paulo Prize wins and has attracted international attention through translations.
Quotes
-
“I am already a woman twenty-four hours a day. I want to be a man a little bit, a little rough. (...) I can only do that in literature, because in this life I won't be able to do that.”
Source: Interview (source: Jornal Rascunho and cited interviews)
Trivia
- Grew up surrounded by books but lost interest in adolescence and played in a punk rock band.
- Her mother is a literature teacher and her father ran a bar.
- Won the São Paulo Prize for Literature for Best Novel in consecutive years (2018 and 2019).