María José Ferrada was born in Temuco in 1977. She graduate in journalism from the Diego Portales University and holds Master Degree in Asian Studies from the University of Barcelona. Since 2005 she has published her books in leading national publishers (Kalandraka, A buen paso, Libros del Zorro Rojo) as well as international (Amanuta, Planeta Chile, Loqueleo Chile; Castillo and Tecolote, Mexico), while she has made self-publishing and creation of handmade books as objects d’art. María José Ferrada has obtained different scholarships for creative writing. She has been invited to represent Chile at the book fairs in Guadalajara (Mexico), Turin (Italy) and Bogotá (Colombia). She has received numerous awards, including: The Chilean Academy of Language Prize; Santiago Municipal Literature Award; Best Novel Prize from the Circle of Art Critics of Chile. Her book Un jardín, illustrated by Isidro Ferrer (A buen paso, 2016), was awarded by the Banco del Libro Venezuela as the best children's book; the same year it was honourable mention in the Ragazzi Awards of the International Children's and Youth Book Fair of Bologna (2017).
“There’s a thread that sews together day and night./ Looking out the window, Sofía saw two birds perched on it.” So begins this poem by María José Ferrada, where concrete images and metaphors are intertwined with illustration, telling more than a single story, singing more than one song. The...[more]