Bernice Rubens
A Welsh novelist who captured the dark corners of family life and became the first woman to win the Booker Prize.
1923–2004 (age 81)·Welsh novelist·Birthday: July 26·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Bernice Rubens grew up in Cardiff, the daughter of a Lithuanian Jewish tailor, and her Welsh-Jewish heritage became a deep well for her unsettling fiction. She initially pursued music, teaching for a time, but found her true instrument in prose. Her novels, often exploring themes of obsession, guilt, and domestic claustrophobia, were marked by a psychological intensity and a darkly comic touch. The 1970 Booker Prize win for 'The Elected Member', a story of a brilliant man's breakdown, was a landmark moment that brought her work to a wider audience. Rubens wrote with relentless energy into her later years, producing over two dozen novels that refused to offer easy comfort, securing her place as a distinctive and uncompromising voice in British literature.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Bernice was born in 1923, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bernice Was Born
The biggest hits of 1923
#1 Movie
The Covered Wagon
Bernice's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1923Born
The Great Kanto earthquake devastates Tokyo
President: Calvin Coolidge"Yes! We Have No Bananas" — Billy Jones
1928Started school
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin; Mickey Mouse debuts
President: Calvin Coolidge"Ol' Man River" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: Wings
1936Became a teenager
Jesse Owens wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"The Way You Look Tonight" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: The Great Ziegfeld
1939Could drive
World War II begins; The Wizard of Oz premieres
Gas: $0.19/galMin wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Over the Rainbow" — Judy GarlandBest Picture: Gone with the Wind
1941Could vote
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1944Turned 21
D-Day: Allied forces land at Normandy
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,400Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Swinging on a Star" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Going My Way
1953Turned 30
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1963Turned 40
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1973Turned 50
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1983Turned 60
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1993Turned 70
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 80
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2004Died at 81
Indian Ocean tsunami kills over 230,000
Gas: $1.88/galHome: $157,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Yeah!" — UsherBest Picture: Million Dollar Baby
Key Achievements
- Became the first woman to win the Booker Prize in 1970 for her novel 'The Elected Member'.
- Authored more than 25 novels across a career spanning over four decades.
- Served as a Booker Prize judge in 1974 and was later shortlisted for the prize again in 1978.
- Was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in recognition of her contribution to letters.
Did You Know?
She was a talented cellist and initially trained as a musician before turning to writing.
Her novel 'The Elected Member' was originally titled 'The Chosen Person'.
Rubens also directed a documentary film, 'Stress', in 1970.
She was the first female president of the Welsh Academy of Letters.
“I write out of terror, and I think most writers do. You write to placate the terror, to get it down on paper.”
