The jury, comprised of António Pedro Pita, Paula Mendes Coelho, and Salvato Teles de Menezes, awarded the prize to Manuel Alegre by majority vote. The decision recognized the work, embedded in an autobiographical lineage, for expressing “in various times, paths, and aesthetic registers of a singular journey, a very vigorous notation of the historical-social, cultural, and political contexts of our recent decades as a country.”
“With his distinctive writing identity, Manuel Alegre proposes paths of revelation and sharing to the reader, becoming a remarkable instance of dialogue and enjoyment,” adds the APE statement, quoting the jury’s minutes.
The same note highlights another biography that stood out among the competition entries, warranting special mention from the jury: “‘Fortuna, Casa, Tempo e Sorte – Biografia de Luiz Vaz de Camões’, by Isabel Rio Novo, for the notable contribution it makes, through an extensive undertaking, to the celebration of the five hundredth anniversary of the birth of the poet who so incomparably marks our Literary History.”
The book “Memórias minhas” was published by Dom Quixote in April 2024; “Fortuna, Casa, Tempo e Sorte – Biografia de Luiz Vaz de Camões,” by Contraponto, in June of last year.
The Grande Prémio de Literatura Biográfica Miguel Torga, established by the Associação Portuguesa de Escritores with the sponsorship of the Câmara Municipal de Coimbra, aims to annually honor works by Portuguese authors in domains such as biography, autobiography, photobiography, diary, memoirs, among others.
The monetary value of this Grand Prize is 12,500 euros, and the award ceremony will take place on July 4th, the City’s Day, in Coimbra.
Manuel Alegre de Melo Duarte was born on May 12, 1936, in Águeda, and studied in Lisbon, Porto, and Coimbra.
In 1961, he was mobilized to Angola, was arrested by PIDE, and spent six months in the Fortress of S. Paulo in Luanda, where he wrote much of the poetry for his first book, “Praça da Canção.”
A historic leader of the Socialist Party, he served as vice-president of the Assembly of the Republic from 1995 to 2009 and was a member of the Council of State.
Throughout his life, he has been honored with several literary prizes, such as the Grande Prémio de Poesia of APE-CTT, the Literary Criticism Prize of the International Association of Literary Critics (AICL), the Fernando Namora Prize, and the Pessoa Prize in 1999.
In 2016, he received the APE Literary Life Prize and the SPA Career Achievement Prize. In the same year, the Grande Prémio de Literatura dst was awarded to his poetry book “Bairro Ocidental.” In 2017, he was honored with the Camões Prize, and in 2019, with the SPA Life and Work Prize.
