Alfonso Chase is a contemporary Costa Rican author. He was educated in Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and he began his career in poetry

Poetry

Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...

 in 1965. He has received numerous awards for his writing, including the Premio Nacional de Poesía twice (1967 and 1995), the Premio Nacional de la Novela (1968) and the Premio Nacional de Cuento (1975); he has also been awarded the Premio Carmen Lyra, de Literatura Infantil y Juvenil for children's literature

Children's literature

Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...

 (1978). As well as representing Costa Rica in several international committees, he founded the Department of Publications of Costa Rica's Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports in 1970. He has worked at the Universidad Nacional in Heredia

Heredia, Costa Rica

Heredia is a city located in the Heredia province of Costa Rica and is the capital of that province. It is currently undergoing a rapid process of industrialization and is located 10 kilometers north of the country's capital, San José....

 since 1974, and was named Fulbright Scholar in Residence at the University of Arkansas

University of Arkansas

The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with very high research activity. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and is located in...

-Fayetteville

Fayetteville, Arkansas

Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

in 1991-92.