Author Afonso Cruz has been awarded the Grande Prémio de Literatura de Viagens Maria Ondina Braga for his book ‘O que a chama iluminou’, as announced today by the Associação Portuguesa de Escritores (APE).
In a statement, the APE—sponsoring the award together with the Braga Municipal Council—highlighted the jury for the 8th edition of the prize, composed of Fernando Batista, Guilherme d’Oliveira Martins, and Isabel Cristina Mateus.
“Beginning with a challenging journey in Chile, the author reflects on human existence and the mysteries of the cosmos in the Atacama Desert, seen as a window on time and the evolution of the world. However, the human dramas of a country marked by violence lead us to hope, through the flame that illuminates who we are in our unique singularity,” the jury noted in their reasoning for awarding the prize, which Afonso Cruz receives for the second time, having first won it in 2019 for ‘Jalan Jalan’.
This 8th edition of the Grande Prémio de Literatura de Viagens Maria Ondina Braga received submissions from Portuguese works and authors published in 2024.
The prize carries a monetary award of 12,500 euros.
Born in Figueira da Foz in 1971, Afonso Cruz is a writer and multidisciplinary artist, including illustrator, photographer, and musician, and in his free time, he produces craft beer. He also worked as a filmmaker for over a decade.
As noted by the APE in the biography shared along with the prize announcement, within less than 20 years of a literary career, Afonso Cruz has been honored with national and international awards, including the Grande Prémio de Conto Camilo Castelo Branco, Prémio Fernando Namora, SPA awards for Best Children’s Book and Best Narrative Fiction Book, Prémio Literário Maria Rosa Colaço, European Union Prize for Literature, Fundação Nacional do Livro Infantil e Juvenil of Brazil Prize, and the Iberian Álvaro Magalhães Prize.
