About RICHARD
Richard Zimler is a novelist whose works have been published in 23 languages and been bestsellers in 13 different countries, including the USA, UK, France, Italy, Brazil, Australia and Portugal.
Richard was born in in New York in 1956. After earning a bachelor’s degree in comparative religion from Duke University (1977) and a master’s degree in journalism from Stanford University (1982), he worked for eight years as a journalist in the San Francisco Bay area. In 1990, he moved to Porto, Portugal, where he taught journalism for sixteen years, first at the College of Journalism and later at the University of Porto.
His new novel, The Incandescent Threads, was published in the UK and Ireland in July of 2022 and will come out in the USA, Canada and Australia in early November. It was a number 1 bestseller in Portgugal and one of the Books of the Year. To read more about the book, please visit the publisher's site: https://www.parthianbooks.com/collections/recommended-fiction/products/the-incandescent-threads-hardback (You can read the first 15 pages of the novel by clicking on “Books” at this website and then clicking on the cover)
His previous novel, The Gospel According to Lazarus, was published in 2019. The paperback has a new title: The Lost Gospel of Lazarus. The novel was lauded by the Sunday Times as one of the Books of the Year and received glowing reviews in the Observer, Jewish Chronicle, Jewish Week and many other newspapers and magazines. It rose into the TOP 500 on Amazon and became a Number 1 “Spiritual Book” bestseller.
In chronological order, his works are: The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, Unholy Ghosts, The Angelic Darkness, Hunting Midnight, Guardian of the Dawn, The Search for Sana, The Seventh Gate. The Warsaw Anagrams, Teresa Island (in Portugal and Brazil only), The Night Watchman, The Gospel According to Lazarus and The Incandescent Threads.
The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, Hunting Midnight, Guardian of the Dawn, The Seventh Gate and The Incandescent Threads form the “Sephardic Cycle,” a group of inter-connected – but fully independent – novels about different branches and generations of a Portuguese Jewish family. Each novel is meant to stand fully alone.
Five of his novels have been nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award, the richest prize in the English-speaking world. The novels are: The Night Watchman, Hunting Midnight, The Search for Sana, The Warsaw Anagrams and The Seventh Gate.
Richard has won numerous other honors for his work, including the Marquis de Ouro prize in 2010 - as Book of the Year in Portugal - for The Warsaw Anagrams. This prize is voted on by high school teachers and students. He also won the 2009 Alberto Benveniste prize in fiction for Guardian of the Dawn (for best Jewish-themed novel published in France), and the 1998 Herodotus Award, for The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon (Best First Historical Novel). Additionally, The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon was picked as 1998 Book of the Year by three British critics. Richard was also granted a 1994 U.S. National Endowment of the Arts Fellowship in Fiction.
Richard has written six children's books that have been published in Portugal: Dança Quando Chegares ao Fim, Hugo e Eu e as Mangas de Marte, Se Eu Fosse, O Cão que Comia a Chuva, Maria e Danilo e o Mágico Perdido and Na Terra dos Animais Falantes. O Cão que Comia a Chuva (The Dog Who Ate Raindrops in English) has illustrations by one of the most famous and well-respected Portuguese artists Julio Pomar. This book won the prize for Best Children's Book of 2018 from the Bissaya Barreto Foundation of Portugal. Richard writes his children's books in Portuguese.
In July 2017, the city of Porto awarded Zimler its highest distinction, the Medal of Honor. At the ceremony, Porto mayor Rui Moreira described the novelist as, "A citizen of Porto who was born far away, who makes Porto greater and grander... Zimler projects the city of Porto out into the world and brings the rest of the world to us."
A short film Zimler wrote and acted in - The Slow Mirror - was awarded the Best Drama award at the 2010 New York Downtown Short Film Festival.
When he isn't writing or publicizing his books, he enjoys gardening at his weekend house in the north of Portugal. He is married to Alexandre Quintanilha, a member of the Portuguese Parliament. They have lived together since 1978.
NEWS FOR 2022: MY NEW NOVEL, THE INCANDESCENT THREADS, WAS RELEASED IN THE UK IN EARLY JULY AND WILL BE PUBLISHED IN THE USA IN EARLY NOVEMBER.
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VIDEOS
Here is a four-minute interview with RIchard about the city where he lives - Porto - and the nearby Douro Valley. The images are absolutely spectacular (and should make you want to visit!)
