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Nicholasa Mohr

ニコラーサ・モーア

Nicholasa Mohr

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1938-11-01 （Manhattan, New York, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English, Spanish
Residence History
Manhattan (East Harlem), New York → Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S.

Career

Occupations
novelist, short story writer, children's author, playwright, screenwriter, illustrator, educator
Active Years
1953-
Influenced By
Puerto Rican culture and migratory experience, Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco
Influenced
Lin-Manuel Miranda (has cited Nilda as influential)

Education

High school (fashion illustration)
Period: 1950s
Year of Graduation: 1953
Country: United States
Studied fashion illustration in high school
Art Students League of New York
Period: 1950s〜1960s
Country: United States
Studied art; influenced by Mexican muralists
Taller de Gráficos (Mexico City)
Period: 短期（1学期）
Country: Mexico
Studied printmaking/graphics for a semester
New School for Social Research
Period: 1950s
Country: United States
Studied art and social research
Brooklyn Museum Art School / Pratt Graphics Center
Period: 1959頃
Country: United States
Training in graphics and art

Awards

Jane Addams Children's Book Award
1974
Work: Nilda
Organization: Jane Addams Children's Book Awards
Result: 受賞
The New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year
Organization: The New York Times
Result: 選出
National Book Award (finalist)
1976
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: 最終候補
American Book Award
1981
Organization: Before Columbus Foundation
Result: 受賞
Hispanic Heritage Award for Literature
1997
Organization: Hispanic Heritage Foundation
Result: 受賞
Lifetime Achievement Award (National Congress of Puerto Rican Women)
1996
Organization: National Congress of Puerto Rican Women
Result: 受賞
Honorary Doctor of Letters (SUNY Albany)
1989
Organization: State University of New York, Albany
Result: 授与
Raul Julia Award (Puerto Rican Family Institute)
2007
Organization: Puerto Rican Family Institute
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Nilda

1973 Bildungsroman / Young adult novel

A semi-autobiographical novel tracing the life of a Puerto Rican teenage girl in New York during and after WWII, confronting ethnic and gender prejudice and finding refuge in art.

identityassimilation and resistancefemale coming-of-ageart as expression
Translations
  • Spanish translations available

El Bronx Remembered

1975 Short story collection / Novella

A collection of stories and a novella about Puerto Ricans in New York, focusing on migration, identity, and the sense of being 'strangers in their own country.'

immigrant experiencecultural alienationcommunity and memory

Rituals of Survival: a Woman's Portfolio

1985 Short story collection

A collection of short stories each featuring a different Puerto Rican American woman, exploring themes of economic hardship, racism, sexism, and female self-reliance.

female autonomysexuality and genderfamily and tradition

The Song of El Coquí and Other Tales of Puerto Rico

1995 Children's literature / Folktales

A children's book discussing ancestral traditions of Puerto Rico, blending Latin American, African, Spanish and indigenous heritages, using animals to illustrate cultural mixtures. Published in both English and Spanish.

cultural heritagemulticulturalismfolktales
Translations
  • La canción del coquí y otros tales (Spanish edition)

Bibliography

  • Nilda: a novel
  • El Bronx Remembered: A Novella and Stories
  • In Nueva York
  • Felita
  • Going Home
  • Rituals of Survival: a Woman's Portfolio
  • Growing Up Inside the Sanctuary of My Imagination
  • A Matter of Pride and Other Stories
  • The Song of El Coquí and Other Tales of Puerto Rico
  • La canción del coquí y otros tales (Spanish edition)
  • The Magic Shell / El regalo mágico
  • Old Letivia and the Mountain of Sorrows / La vieja Letivia y el Monte de los Pesares
  • I Never Even Seen My Father (play)

Translations of Works

  • La canción del coquí y otros tales (1995 Spanish edition)
  • El regalo mágico (Spanish translation of The Magic Shell)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
semi-autobiographical realismnarration grounded in everyday life and memoryconcise, allegorical voice in children's works
Recurring Motifs
alienation as an immigrantbilingual/bicultural conflictwomen's self-realizationart and creativity as sanctuary

Legacy

Nicholasa Mohr is a leading figure in Nuyorican literature of the late 20th century, widely recognized for portraying Puerto Rican American women's experiences. Her work spans children's and adult literature and has long-lasting influence, including use in educational curricula.

Archives

  • Library of Congress (LCCN entries)

In Popular Culture

  • Lin-Manuel Miranda cited Nilda as one of the books that shaped him

Trivia

  • Considered one of the first Nuyorican women of the 20th century to be published by major commercial houses.
  • Created the dust jacket and eight illustrations for her novel Nilda.
  • Raised bilingually in English and Spanish; bilingual/bicultural experience is reflected in her writing.