Carter, Angela Olive

(1940-1992)

   Carter, formerly Stalker, author, poet and essayist, is known for her macabre use of symbolism, myths, legends and fairy tales in her books. Born in Eastbourne, Sussex, she studied medieval literature at Bristol University. Her main prose publications are: Shadow Dance, 1966. The Magic Toyshop, 1967 (filmed 1986). Several Perceptions, 1968. The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman, 1972. The Passion of New Eve, 1977. Wise Children, 1991. She also wrote short stories and five books on philosophy and edited five volumes, including The Virago Book of Fairy Tales (1990). Poem collections: Unicorn, 1966. Five Quiet Shouters. My Cat in Her First Spring, 1966.

   Sources: Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD, 2006. My Cat in Her First Spring: Sixties Press-Poetry (http://www.sixtiespress.co.uk/poetry.htm). The Angela Carter Unofficial Web Site (http://perso.wanadoo.fr/andrew.milne/page%201.htm). The National Portrait Gallery (www.npg.org.uk). The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000.