Author Carlos Fuentes dies

The Mexican author Carlos Fuentes, famed for his influence on Latin American literature during its novel-writing boom in the 1960s and 70s, died Tuesday at a hospital in Mexico City, aged 83.

Although Mexican media reported that Fuentes was being treated for heart problems, the cause of death was not immediately known, according to a culture official at Mexico's National Council for Culture.

News of his passing triggered a wave of Twitter messages lamenting his death and honoring the legacy of arguably Mexico's best-known living author. They included one from Mexican President Felipe Calderon.

“I deeply lament the death of our beloved and admired Carlos Fuentes, a universal Mexican writer,” tweeted Calderon.

The prolific author's portfolio of work included his first novel, “Where the Air is Clear,”  “Aura,” “Terra Nostra,” and “The Old Gringo.” Although he was mentioned as a Nobel Prize candidate more than once, he never won.

Fuentes' work also went beyond novel-writing. He wrote plays and an opera, and co-founded a literary magazine.

He was also famous for a refusal to shy away from politics, and his views made him a somewhat controversial figure. Fuentes was at one point seen as a communist supporter of Cuba's Fidel Castro and was barred from the US. More recently he was also a harsh critic of strict immigration policies and the US war on terrorism.

sej/rc (AP, AFP)