Magdalen Nabb
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Magdalen Nabb (; 16 January 1947 – 18 August 2007) was a British author, best known for the Marshal Guarnaccia
detective novel Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...
s.


Early life and education

Magdalen Nuttal was born in
Church, Lancashire Church is a large village in Hyndburn, Lancashire, England, situated west of Accrington. The village had a population of 5,186 at the 2011 census, an increase from 3,990 according to the 2001 census. History and geography Church was once a ...
on 16 January 1947, and was raised in
Ramsbottom Ramsbottom is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. The population at the 2011 census was 17,872. Historically in Lancashire, it lies on the River Irwell in the West Pennine Moors, north-west of Bur ...
. She went by 'Magda' with her two sisters and parents. Both of her parents' died while she was in childhood; her father died of
rheumatic fever Rheumatic fever (RF) is an inflammation#Disorders, inflammatory disease that can involve the heart, joints, skin, and brain. The disease typically develops two to four weeks after a Streptococcal pharyngitis, streptococcal throat infection. Si ...
at age 32 when she was 7, and her mother died suddenly when Nuttal was 13. She and her sisters moved in with their aunt, but within two weeks, their uncle died. Nuttal attended the Convent Grammar School in
Bury, Greater Manchester Bury (, ) is a market town on the River Irwell in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. which had a population of 81,101 in 2021 while the wider borough had a population of 193,846. The town was originally part of the ...
, then attended an art college in Manchester, where she studied arts and pottery.


Career

Nabb began her career teaching art at a primary school in
Holcombe, Greater Manchester Holcombe is a village in Ramsbottom ward, Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It is situated south of Haslingden, east of Edgworth, west of Ramsbottom, and north of Tottington. The name comes from the Celtic ' meani ...
. After moving to
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
in 1975, Nabb initially worked as a grape-picker and a potter before she began writing. Soon, she began working at
Casa Guidi Casa Guidi is a writer's house museum in the 15th-century patrician house in Piazza San Felice, 8, near the south end of the Pitti Palace in Florence, Italy. The ''piano nobile'' apartment was inhabited by Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning ...
, descriptions of which she used in her first novel; she also met the physical model for Marshal Guarnaccia. Her first book, ''Death of an Englishman'', was first published in 1981. Belgian writer
Georges Simenon Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (; 12/13 February 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a Belgian writer who created the fictional detective Jules Maigret. One of the most prolific and successful authors of the 20th century, he published around 400 ...
was impressed with the novel and reached out to Nabb, who had admired Simenon's work; the two became lifelong friends. Nabb subsequently published 12 additional crime detective novels, all of which are set in Florence, which she describes as a "very secret city". She lived near enough to the
Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign poli ...
station at Pitti to stroll there regularly and have a chat with the marshal, who kept her up to date on crime in the city. Her final novel, ''Vita Nuova'' in the Marshal Guarnaccia series, was posthumously published in 2008. In addition to her novels intended for adults, Nabb wrote 12 ''Josie Smith'' books for children, all of which are set in Ramsbottom in the school Nabb attended. In 1991, ''Jose Smith and Eileen'', the second book in the series, won the
Nestlé Smarties Book Prize The Nestlé Children's Book Prize, and Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for a time, was a set of annual awards for British children's books that ran from 1985 to 2007. It was administered by BookTrust, an independent charity that promotes books and r ...
. She also wrote two unrelated children's books, ''The Enchanted Horse'' and ''Twilight Ghost''. The former won the 1993 Nestlé Smarties Book Prize. Nabb also occasionally wrote journalistic pieces for English, German and Italian papers.


Philanthropy

Nabb donated and raised funds for the
Brooke Hospital for Animals Brooke is a United Kingdom-based international equine charity, which focuses on the welfare and care of donkeys, horses and mules. With more than 900 people working helping to deliver services, Brooke is the largest equine charity in the world ...
, a UK-based international equine charity. All royalties from her 1993 book ''The Enchanted Horse'' were donated to the charity. In 2005, she raised money by riding across Kenya for six hours daily. In the mid-2000s, Nabb helped residents in Afghanistan, first by supporting a school for Afghan refugee children, then financing a well to provide fresh water.


Personal life

Nuttal married James Nabb, though the marriage was brief. The couple had a son, Liam. In 1975, Nabb moved to
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
with her son, Liam, and her new companion, poet Nigel Thompson. In 1994, Nabb suffered a
stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
but recovered. Nabb died in Florence of a
stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
at age 60 on 18 August 2007.


Publications


Books for adults


Standalone books

*Co-written with Paolo Vagheggi: *


Maresciallo Guarnaccia series

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Books for children


Standalone books

* Illustrated by Julek Heller. *


Josie Smith series

The Josie Smith books are illustrated by Pirkko Vainio and published by
Margaret K. McElderry Books Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Old Iranian. It has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular throughout the Middle Ages. It became le ...
in New York. * * * * * * * * * * *


References


External links

*
Obituary
in The Times, 23 August 2007

– Part Eight featuring ''The Monster of Florence, website Italian-Mysteries.com'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nabb, Magdalen 1947 births 2007 deaths People from Church, Lancashire English artists English crime fiction writers English children's writers British women mystery writers 20th-century English novelists 20th-century British women writers