French_AJ0 Canadian_AJ0 author_NN1 Marie-Claire_NP0 Blais_NP0 published_VVD her_DPS first_ORD novel_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ La_NP0 Belle_NP0 Bête_NP0 "_PUQ (_PUL 1959_CRD )_PUR ,_PUN at_PRP age_NN1 20._CRD It_PNP was_VBD translated_VVN into_PRP English_NN1 as_CJS "_PUQ Mad_AJ0 Shadows_NN2 ._SENT "_PUQ (_PUL Jill_NP0 Glessing_NP0 )_PUR 
Marie-Claire_NP0 Blais_NP0 ,_PUN a_AT0 French_AJ0 Canadian_AJ0 author_NN1 who_PNQ found_VVD wide_AJ0 acclaim_NN1 with_PRP her_DPS brutally_AV0 violent_AJ0 ,_PUN verbally_AV0 exuberant_AJ0 novels_NN2 about_PRP suffering_NN1 ,_PUN rebellion_NN1 ,_PUN intimacy_NN1 and_CJC family_NN1 ,_PUN died_VVD Nov._NP0 30_CRD in_PRP Key_NP0 West_NP0 ,_PUN Fla._NP0 She_PNP was_VBD 82._CRD 
Her_DPS death_NN1 was_VBD announced_VVN by_PRP the_AT0 Goodwin_NP0 Agency_NN1 ,_PUN which_DTQ represented_VVD her_PNP but_CJC did_VDD not_XX0 give_VVI a_AT0 cause_NN1 ._SENT Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 had_VHD split_VVN her_DPS time_NN1 for_PRP many_DT0 years_NN2 between_PRP Florida_NP0 and_CJC Quebec_NP0 ,_PUN where_AVQ she_PNP was_VBD considered_VVN one_CRD of_PRF the_AT0 province_NN1 's_POS preeminent_AJ0 authors_NN2 ._SENT 
Although_CJS she_PNP never_AV0 had_VHD a_AT0 large_AJ0 audience_NN1 in_PRP the_AT0 United_NP0 States_NP0 ,_PUN she_PNP cultivated_VVD an_AT0 ardent_AJ0 readership_NN1 in_PRP the_AT0 French_AJ0 literary_AJ0 world_NN1 and_CJC was_VBD a_AT0 four-time_AJ0 winner_NN1 of_PRF the_AT0 Governor_NP0 General_NP0 's_POS Literary_AJ0 Award_NN1 ,_PUN one_PNI of_PRF Canada_NP0 's_POS top_AJ0 honors_NN2 ._SENT French_AJ0 Canadian_AJ0 novelist_NN1 Michel_NP0 Tremblay_NP0 called_VVD her_DPS "_PUQ one_CRD of_PRF our_DPS greatest_AJS national_AJ0 treasures_NN2 ._SENT "_PUQ 
Writing_VVG for_PRP the_AT0 Globe_NN1 and_CJC Mail_NN1 in_PRP 2019_CRD ,_PUN book_NN1 critic_NN1 Jade_NP0 Colbert_NP0 described_VVD Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 as_CJS "_PUQ the_AT0 21st_ORD century_NN1 's_POS Virginia_NP0 Woolf_NP0 ,_PUN "_PUQ noting_VVG the_AT0 "_PUQ stylistic_AJ0 innovation_NN1 and_CJC moments_NN2 of_PRF ecstatic_AJ0 clarity_NN1 "_PUQ in_PRP her_DPS recent_AJ0 novels_NN2 ,_PUN particularly_AV0 in_PRP a_AT0 10-book_AJ0 cycle_NN1 called_VVN "_PUQ Soifs_NN2 "_PUQ (_PUL "_PUQ Thirstings_NN2 "_PUQ )_PUR that_CJT Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 wrote_VVD in_PRP an_AT0 impressionistic_AJ0 ,_PUN stream-of-consciousness_AJ0 style_NN1 ,_PUN without_PRP paragraph_NN1 or_CJC chapter_NN1 breaks_NN2 ._SENT An_AT0 English_AJ0 translation_NN1 of_PRF the_AT0 cycle_NN1 's_POS ninth_ORD installment_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ Songs_NN2 for_PRP Angel_NP0 ,_PUN "_PUQ was_VBD published_VVN in_PRP July_NP0 ._SENT 
Her_DPS novels_NN2 —_PUN she_PNP also_AV0 wrote_VVD plays_NN2 ,_PUN radio_NN1 dramas_NN2 ,_PUN television_NN1 scripts_NN2 and_CJC poetry_NN1 —_PUN were_VBD filled_VVN with_PRP abusive_AJ0 priests_NN2 ,_PUN wayward_AJ0 nuns_NN2 ,_PUN illiterate_AJ0 farmers_NN2 and_CJC delinquent_AJ0 children_NN2 ,_PUN and_CJC engaged_VVN with_PRP issues_NN2 such_DT0 as_PRP white_AJ0 supremacy_NN1 ,_PUN AIDS_NN1 and_CJC nuclear_AJ0 war_NN1 ._SENT Animals_NN2 were_VBD tortured_VVN ,_PUN blood_NN1 was_VBD spilled_VVN ;_PUN in_PRP her_DPS first_ORD book_NN1 ,_PUN a_AT0 young_AJ0 woman_NN1 shoves_VVZ her_DPS brother_NN1 's_POS head_NN1 into_PRP a_AT0 pot_NN1 of_PRF boiling_AJ0 water_NN1 before_PRP burning_VVG down_AVP their_DPS house_NN1 ._SENT 
"_PUQ Personally_AV0 ,_PUN I_PNP do_VDB n't_XX0 like_VVI suffering_VVG ._SENT I_PNP prefer_VVB serenity_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ the_AT0 publicity-shy_AJ0 Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 said_VVD in_PRP a_AT0 rare_AJ0 interview_NN1 with_PRP the_AT0 Walrus_NN0 ,_PUN a_AT0 Canadian_AJ0 magazine_NN1 ._SENT "_PUQ I_PNP am_VBB not_XX0 at_PRP all_DT0 a_AT0 dark_AJ0 person_NN1 ;_PUN in_PRP fact_NN1 ,_PUN I_PNP love_VVB it_PNP when_CJS friends_NN2 drag_VVB me_PNP away_AV0 from_PRP writing_NN1 and_CJC out_AVP to_PRP a_AT0 bar_NN1 ,_PUN although_CJS sometimes_AV0 I_PNP write_VVB in_PRP bars_NN2 ,_PUN too_AV0 ._SENT It_PNP 's_VBZ just_AV0 that_DT0 so_CJS many_DT0 of_PRF my_DPS friends_NN2 seem_VVB to_TO0 have_VHI an_AT0 aptitude_NN1 for_PRP suffering_VVG ._SENT "_PUQ 
Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 was_VBD only_AV0 20_CRD when_AVQ she_PNP published_VVD her_DPS first_ORD novel_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ La_NP0 Belle_NP0 Bête_NP0 "_PUQ (_PUL 1959_CRD )_PUR ,_PUN a_AT0 gothic_AJ0 tale_NN1 of_PRF a_AT0 neglected_AJ0 and_CJC resentful_AJ0 girl_NN1 ,_PUN her_DPS handsome_AJ0 and_CJC simple-minded_AJ0 younger_AJC brother_NN1 and_CJC their_DPS widowed_AJ0 mother_NN1 ._SENT Translated_VVN into_PRP English_NN1 as_CJS "_PUQ Mad_AJ0 Shadows_NN2 ,_PUN "_PUQ the_AT0 book_NN1 received_VVD a_AT0 French_AJ0 literary_AJ0 prize_NN1 from_PRP the_AT0 Académie_NP0 Française_NP0 in_PRP Paris_NP0 and_CJC was_VBD adapted_VVN for_PRP the_AT0 stage_NN1 by_PRP the_AT0 National_AJ0 Ballet_NN1 of_PRF Canada_NP0 ._SENT 
"_PUQ The_AT0 book_NN1 made_VVD me_PNP very_AV0 uneasy_AJ0 ,_PUN "_PUQ Canadian_AJ0 author_NN1 Margaret_NP0 Atwood_NP0 later_AV0 wrote_VVD ,_PUN "_PUQ for_PRP more_DT0 than_CJS the_AT0 obvious_AJ0 reasons_NN2 :_PUN the_AT0 violence_NN1 ,_PUN the_AT0 murders_NN2 ,_PUN suggestions_NN2 of_PRF incest_NN1 and_CJC the_AT0 hallucinatory_AJ0 intensity_NN1 of_PRF the_AT0 writing_NN1 were_VBD rare_AJ0 in_PRP Canadian_AJ0 literature_NN1 in_PRP those_DT0 days_NN2 ,_PUN but_CJC even_AV0 scarier_AJC was_VBD the_AT0 thought_NN1 that_CJT this_DT0 bloodcurdling_AJ0 fantasy_NN1 ,_PUN as_CJS well_AV0 as_CJS its_DPS precocious_AJ0 verbal_AJ0 skill_NN1 ,_PUN were_VBD the_AT0 products_NN2 of_PRF a_AT0 girl_NN1 of_PRF 19._CRD I_PNP was_VBD 19_CRD myself_PNX ,_PUN and_CJC with_PRP such_DT0 an_AT0 example_NN1 before_PRP me_PNP I_PNP already_AV0 felt_VVD like_PRP a_AT0 late_AJ0 bloomer_NN1 ._SENT "_PUQ 
Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 's_POS admirers_NN2 also_AV0 included_VVD literary_AJ0 critic_NN1 Edmund_NP0 Wilson_NP0 ,_PUN who_PNQ helped_VVD her_PNP secure_VVI a_AT0 Guggenheim_NP0 Fellowship_NN1 in_PRP 1963._CRD Two_CRD years_NN2 later_AV0 ,_PUN he_PNP described_VVD her_PNP in_PRP his_DPS book_NN1 "_PUQ O_ZZ0 Canada_NP0 "_PUQ as_PRP "_PUQ a_AT0 writer_NN1 in_PRP a_AT0 class_NN1 by_PRP herself_PNX ,_PUN "_PUQ adding_VVG :_PUN "_PUQ At_PRP the_AT0 age_NN1 of_PRF twenty-four_CRD ,_PUN she_PNP has_VHZ produced_VVN four_CRD remarkable_AJ0 books_NN2 of_PRF a_AT0 passionate_AJ0 and_CJC poetic_AJ0 force_NN1 that_CJT ,_PUN as_CJS far_AV0 as_CJS my_DPS reading_NN1 goes_VVZ ,_PUN is_VBZ not_XX0 otherwise_AV0 to_TO0 be_VBI found_VVN in_PRP French_AJ0 Canadian_AJ0 fiction_NN1 ._SENT "_PUQ 
She_PNP received_VVD further_AJC acclaim_NN1 for_PRP "_PUQ A_AT0 Season_NN1 in_PRP the_AT0 Life_NN1 of_PRF Emmanuel_NP0 "_PUQ (_PUL 1965_CRD )_PUR ,_PUN perhaps_AV0 her_DPS best-known_AJ0 novel_NN1 ,_PUN about_PRP a_AT0 rural_AJ0 French_AJ0 Canadian_AJ0 family_NN1 and_CJC the_AT0 birth_NN1 of_PRF their_DPS 16th_ORD child_NN1 ._SENT The_AT0 family_NN1 is_VBZ so_AV0 large_AJ0 that_CJT one_CRD unlucky_AJ0 boy_NN1 is_VBZ known_VVN simply_AV0 as_PRP Number_NN1 Seven_CRD ,_PUN for_PRP his_DPS birth_NN1 order_NN1 ._SENT His_DPS siblings_NN2 include_VVB Heloise_NP0 ,_PUN who_PNQ joins_VVZ a_AT0 brothel_NN1 ;_PUN Pomme_NP0 ,_PUN who_PNQ loses_VVZ three_CRD fingers_NN2 at_PRP a_AT0 shoe_NN1 factory_NN1 ;_PUN and_CJC the_AT0 brilliant_AJ0 but_CJC consumptive_AJ0 Jean-Le_NP0 Maigre_NP0 ,_PUN who_PNQ writes_VVZ poetry_NN1 on_PRP sheets_NN2 that_CJT his_DPS grandmother_NN1 repurposes_NN2 as_PRP toilet_NN1 paper_NN1 ._SENT 
Although_CJS Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 said_VVD she_PNP struggled_VVD to_TO0 finish_VVI the_AT0 novel_NN1 ,_PUN feeling_VVG "_PUQ completely_AV0 defeated_VVN ,_PUN broken_VVN "_PUQ at_PRP times_NN2 while_CJS trying_VVG to_TO0 bring_VVI her_DPS characters_NN2 to_PRP life_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ Emmanuel_NP0 "_PUQ earned_VVD the_AT0 Prix_NN1 Médicis_NN1 in_PRP France_NP0 and_CJC was_VBD translated_VVN into_PRP a_AT0 dozen_CRD languages_NN2 ._SENT 
"_PUQ Somehow_AV0 [_PUL Ms._NP0 ]_PUR Blais_NP0 manages_VVZ to_TO0 oppose_VVI and_CJC offset_VVI an_AT0 unyielding_AJ0 realism_NN1 with_PRP imagination_NN1 ,_PUN humor_NN1 and_CJC a_AT0 carnal_AJ0 innocence_NN1 ,_PUN "_PUQ a_AT0 Kirkus_NP0 reviewer_NN1 wrote_VVD ._SENT "_PUQ Her_DPS book_NN1 succeeds_VVZ ,_PUN incomparably_AV0 ,_PUN in_PRP capturing_VVG not_XX0 only_AV0 an_AT0 existence_NN1 but_CJC a_AT0 sense_NN1 of_PRF life_NN1 ._SENT "_PUQ 
The_AT0 oldest_AJS of_PRF five_CRD children_NN2 ,_PUN Marie-Claire_NP0 Blais_NP0 was_VBD born_VVN into_PRP a_AT0 working-class_AJ0 family_NN1 in_PRP Quebec_NP0 City_NN1 on_PRP Oct._NP0 5_CRD ,_PUN 1939._CRD She_PNP was_VBD educated_VVN at_PRP a_AT0 convent_NN1 before_PRP leaving_VVG school_NN1 at_PRP 15_CRD to_TO0 work_VVI as_PRP a_AT0 clerk_NN1 and_CJC typist_NN1 ._SENT 
On_PRP the_AT0 side_NN1 ,_PUN she_PNP took_VVD classes_NN2 at_PRP Université_NP0 Laval_NP0 ,_PUN where_AVQ her_DPS literary_AJ0 talent_NN1 was_VBD noticed_VVN by_PRP Jeanne_NP0 Lapointe_NP0 ,_PUN a_AT0 professor_NN1 and_CJC literary_AJ0 critic_NN1 ,_PUN and_CJC Georges-Henri_NP0 Lévesque_NP0 ,_PUN a_AT0 priest_NN1 and_CJC sociologist_NN1 ._SENT Their_DPS support_NN1 helped_VVD her_PNP publish_VVI her_DPS first_ORD novel_NN1 and_CJC obtain_VVB a_AT0 Canada_NP0 Council_NN1 for_PRP the_AT0 Arts_NN2 grant_NN1 ,_PUN allowing_VVG her_PNP to_TO0 begin_VVI writing_VVG full-time_AJ0 ._SENT 
Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 soon_AV0 moved_VVD to_PRP Paris_NP0 and_CJC then_AV0 the_AT0 United_NP0 States_NP0 ,_PUN where_AVQ Wilson_NP0 introduced_VVD her_PNP to_PRP a_AT0 circle_NN1 of_PRF writers_NN2 and_CJC artists_NN2 on_PRP Cape_NP0 Cod_NP0 ,_PUN including_PRP painter_NN1 and_CJC writer_NN1 Mary_NP0 Meigs_NP0 and_CJC feminist_AJ0 Barbara_NP0 Deming_NP0 ._SENT The_AT0 three_CRD women_NN2 lived_VVD together_AV0 for_PRP six_CRD years_NN2 ,_PUN and_CJC Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 remained_VVD a_AT0 longtime_AJ0 partner_NN1 of_PRF Meigs_NP0 ,_PUN who_PNQ died_VVD in_PRP 2002._CRD 
Survivors_NN2 include_VVB two_CRD brothers_NN2 and_CJC two_CRD sisters_NN2 ,_PUN according_VVG to_PRP her_DPS agent_NN1 ,_PUN Patrick_NP0 Leimgruber_NP0 ._SENT 
Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 's_POS other_AJ0 novels_NN2 included_VVD "_PUQ The_AT0 Manuscripts_NN2 of_PRF Pauline_NP0 Archange_NP0 "_PUQ (_PUL 1968_CRD )_PUR and_CJC "_PUQ Deaf_AJ0 to_PRP the_AT0 City_NN1 "_PUQ (_PUL 1979_CRD )_PUR ,_PUN which_DTQ both_AV0 won_VVD the_AT0 Governor_NP0 General_NP0 's_POS Prize_NN1 ._SENT She_PNP was_VBD also_AV0 honored_VVN for_PRP "_PUQ Soifs_NN2 "_PUQ (_PUL 1995_CRD )_PUR ,_PUN which_DTQ was_VBD translated_VVN into_PRP English_NN1 as_CJS "_PUQ These_DT0 Festive_AJ0 Nights_NN2 "_PUQ and_CJC kicked_VVD off_AVP her_DPS 10-volume_AJ0 series_NN0 ,_PUN set_VVN in_PRP an_AT0 island_NN1 town_NN1 reminiscent_AJ0 of_PRF Key_AJ0 West_NN1 ._SENT 
The_AT0 "_PUQ Soifs_NN2 "_PUQ novels_NN2 featured_VVD hundreds_CRD of_PRF characters_NN2 ,_PUN many_DT0 of_PRF whom_PNQ were_VBD modeled_VVN after_PRP drag_NN1 queens_NN2 ,_PUN barflies_NN2 ,_PUN writers_NN2 and_CJC painters_NN2 that_CJT Ms._NP0 Blais_NP0 met_VVD on_PRP the_AT0 island_NN1 ,_PUN where_CJS she_PNP was_VBD part_NN1 of_PRF a_AT0 community_NN1 of_PRF authors_NN2 that_CJT included_VVD poet_NN1 James_NP0 Merrill_NP0 and_CJC journalist_NN1 John_NP0 Hersey_NP0 ._SENT 
