María Luisa Villardefrancos

Villardefrancos, María Luisa (1915–?), Spanish writer. Her sister, Gloria Villardefrancos, often collaborated with her in the creation of her works, which include fairy tales, legends, biographies, religious books, novels, screenplays, and plays for children. They all are influenced by her religiosity and her pedagogical intention. ¡Erase que se era! (Once Upon a Time!, 1947) is her most important collection of fairy tales. The stories gathered in this work are written in both prose and verse, among them ‘El beso’ (‘The Kiss’), ‘El príncipe Miedo’ (‘Prince Fear’), ‘El enano del bosque’ (‘The Dwarf in the Woods’), and ‘Noche de Reyes’ (‘The Magi's Night’). Villardefrancos's plays for children are also greatly influenced by the fairy‐tale genre. Some of her most famous plays are La princesita fea (The Ugly Little Princess, 1949), El príncipe que no tenía corazón (The Prince without a Heart, 1949), and La princesa de nieve (The Princess of Snow, 1951).

— Carolina Fernandez