Donna Leon

American-swiss writer of crime novels

1942   -  

genre: mystery fiction, crime fiction, crime novel, thriller
country of citizenship: United States of America, Switzerland
language of expression: English, American English
occupation: writer, teacher, novelist, travel guide, copywriter, docent, music interpreter, crime writer, film director, film producer, artist
award received: Palle Rosenkrantz Prize, Berliner Bär
www.donnaleon.net

Donna Leon (; born September 28, 1942, in Montclair, New Jersey) is the American author of a series of crime novels set in Venice, Italy, featuring the fictional hero Commissario Guido Brunetti. In 2003, she received the Corine Literature Prize. Leon lived in Venice for over 30 years and now resides in the small village of Val Müstair in the mountains of Grisons in Switzerland. She also has a home in Zurich. In 2020 she became a Swiss citizen. She was a lecturer in English literature for the University of Maryland University College – Europe (UMUC-Europe) in Italy and taught English from 1981 to 1990 at an American military base in Italy. She has stopped teaching and concentrated on writing and other cultural activities in the field of music (especially baroque music).Her Commissario Brunetti novels all take place in or around Venice. They are written in English and have been translated into many foreign languages, but – at Leon's request – not into Italian. The ninth Brunetti novel, Friends in High Places, won the Crime Writers' Association Silver Dagger in 2000. German television has produced 26 Commissario Brunetti episodes for broadcast.
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