María Teresa Andruetto: Argentina ★ Author

“The power of a writer lies in his capacity to find the particular, to look deep into the heart of men.”

María Teresa Andruetto

María Teresa Andruetto owes much of her passion for literature and storytelling to both her mother, whose inventiveness fostered the creation of stories, and her father, who loved to retell the story of his immigration to Argentina and how he met her mother. Her father also played the mandolin and sang songs of “love and migration.” Displaying knowledge of and respect for the medium of folklore, Andruetto’s writing exhibits aspects of the oral traditions so revered by her parents.

Andruetto was born January 26, 1954 in Arroyo Cabral. Her parents encouraged and taught her to read from a young age, and she was already reading by the time she started school. Her academic achievements led her to study literature at The University of Córdoba. The strong grounding in theory she received there has doubtlessly contributed to her writing becoming a subject of study in schools and universities. Her work is also interesting and worthy of study because it resists categories and classification as it blurs the borders between genres and inventively explores a variety of topics. One common thread among all her works is the presence of a journey, in one way or another. Perhaps this theme is not so surprising: in addition to her immigrant heritage, Andruetto has experienced the fall of the dictatorship and the creation of democracy in Argentina, a journey which undoubtedly influenced her work.

In addition to novels, María Teresa Andruetto has also published short stories, plays, essays, and poetry. She has had a successful career, winning numerous awards including the Secretaría de Cultura de la Nación Argentina Award and the Internationale Jugendbibliotek Award, as well as being included on the IBBY Honor List. However, Andruetto contributes in other ways: in addition to her work as a writer, she is the co-founder of CEDILIJ (Children’s and Youth Literature Publication and Research Centre), the Publishing Secretary for “Piedra Libre” magazine, and a member of the advisory council PROPALE (Reading Program/ National University of Córdoba). She has often been a visiting professor at various institutions and has participated in both national and international conferences, seminars, and workshops. Her concern and care for young people is evident not only in her literature, but also through the many reading programs she has participated in, and the many years she has spent teaching teenagers and young adults in social risk situations.