Mantel married the geologist Gerald McEwan in 1972. She studied law at the London School of Economics and Sheffield University, and went on to become a social work assistant in a geriatric hospital. Mantel was born in Glossop, Derbyshire on 6 July 1952. But I’d rather cope with the world than cope with pain, and the uncertainty that goes with it”, she told the Times in 2012. “Sometimes people try to persuade me that it’s made me a better writer in some way, or that it has meant that I could keep the world at bay.

The author experienced chronic illness throughout her adult life, having a severe form of endometriosis, surgery for which left her unable to have children. Earlier this month HarperCollins published The Wolf Hall Picture Book, a photography book by Mantel and co-authors Ben Miles and George Miles. To date the Wolf Hall trilogy has sold more than five million copies worldwide and has been translated into 41 languages. “There was always a slight aura of otherworldliness about her, as she saw and felt things us ordinary mortals missed, but when she perceived the need for confrontation she would fearlessly go into battle.” “Emails from Hilary were sprinkled with bon mots and jokes as she observed the world with relish and pounced on the lazy or absurd and nailed cruelty and prejudice,” he added. “Her wit, stylistic daring, creative ambition and phenomenal historical insight mark her out as one of the greatest novelists of our time.”

“However, the universe is not limited by what I can imagine,” she said.īill Hamilton, who was Mantel’s agent throughout her career, said it had been “the greatest privilege” to work with the writer. When asked by the Financial Times earlier this month whether she believed in an afterlife, Mantel said she did, but that she could not imagine how it might work. HarperCollins confirmed she had died on Thursday “suddenly yet peacefully”, surrounded by close family and friends. The conclusion to her groundbreaking Wolf Hall trilogy, The Mirror & the Light, was published in 2020 to huge critical acclaim, became an instant Sunday Times bestseller and was longlisted for the Booker prize.

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