Spanish writer Jose Luis Sampedro is dead

Spanish writer, economist and academic Jose Luis Sampedro died in Madrid, his family told EFE Tuesday. He was 96.

Spanish writer, economist and academic Jose Luis Sampedro died in Madrid, his family told EFE Tuesday. He was 96.

He passed away in the early hours of Monday.

Respecting the author's express wishes, news of his death was not announced until Tuesday because Sampedro wanted to go "in a simple way and without publicity", according to his widow Olga Lucas, whom he married in 2003.

Sampedro's death signifies the loss of one of Spain's moral guideposts in the last half of the 20th century.

Sampedro's humanist concept inspired such literary works as "El Rio que Nos Lleva" (The River that Carries Us), "La Sombra de los Dias," and El Mercado y la Globalizacion" (The Market and Globalization), while also winning him the 2011 National Prize for Literature.