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Amy Hempel

エイミー・ヘンペル

Eimī Hemperu

Pen Names: A.J. Rich（Pseudonym used jointly with Jill Ciment）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1951-12-14 （Chicago, Illinois, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Chicago, Illinois (birth) → California (moved at age 16) → New York City (moved mid-1970s) → Austin, Texas (Michener Center for Writers)

Career

Occupations
Short story writer, Essayist, Journalist, Professor
Active Years
1983-
Affiliations
Michener Center for Writers (University of Texas at Austin), University of Florida (former faculty), Harvard University (Briggs-Copeland Lecturer, 2009–2014), Bennington College (Low-Residency MFA faculty), Sarah Lawrence College, Duke University, The New School, Brooklyn College, Princeton University (past teaching)
Memberships
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Influenced By
Gordon Lish, Minimalist short fiction tradition (e.g., Raymond Carver)

Awards

Hobson Award
2000
Organization: Chowan University (Hobson Lecture & Prize)
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
2000
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
USA Fellowship
2006
Organization: United States Artists
Result: 助成
Ambassador Book Award
2007
Work: Collected Stories
Organization: Ambassador Book Award
Result: 受賞
PEN/Faulkner Award
2006
Work: The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel
Organization: PEN/Faulkner Foundation
Result: 最終候補（ファイナリスト）
Rea Award for the Short Story
2008
Organization: Rea Award for the Short Story
Result: 受賞
PEN/Malamud Award
2009
Organization: PEN/Malamud Award
Result: 受賞（Alistair MacLeodと並列受賞）
John William Corrington Award for Literary Excellence
2015
Organization: Centenary College
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Reasons to Live

1985 Fiction / Short story collection

Early short story collection including "In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson Is Buried," showcasing Hempel's minimalist short fiction style.

LossHuman relationshipsAnimals (symbolic)

At the Gates of the Animal Kingdom

1990 Fiction / Short story collection

A collection of stories that include animal-related narratives; notable for emotional clarity and depictions of humans through animals.

AnimalsExpression of emotionLoss

Tumble Home

1997 Fiction / Novella (epistolary/letter form)

A novella structured as a letter; one of her most personal works, highlighting emotional connections between humans and animals.

Epistolary formPersonal confessionBond between humans and animals

The Dog of the Marriage

2005 Fiction / Short story collection

Collection of short stories about marriage and relationships; continues Hempel's use of animal motifs and minimalist narration.

MarriageRelationshipsAnimals

The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel

2006 Fiction / Collected short stories

Comprehensive collection of stories from the 1980s through the 2000s; critically acclaimed and award-recognized.

LossMemoryHuman-animal relationships

The Hand That Feeds You (as A.J. Rich, co-written)

2015 Fiction / Thriller (co-authored)

Novel co-written with Jill Ciment under the name A.J. Rich; a suspense/thriller fiction.

SuspenseInterpersonal relationships

Sing to It

2019 Fiction / Short story collection

A recent collection of short stories demonstrating Hempel's concise style and subtle emotional range.

LossRenewalInterior life

Bibliography

  • Reasons to Live (1985)
  • At the Gates of the Animal Kingdom (1990)
  • Tumble Home (1997)
  • Unleashed: Poems by Writers' Dogs (editor, 1999)
  • The Dog of the Marriage (2005)
  • The Collected Stories of Amy Hempel (2006)
  • New Stories from the South 2010: The Year's Best (editor, 2010)
  • The Hand That Feeds You (co-authored as A.J. Rich, 2015)
  • Sing to It (2019)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Minimalist, concise proseUse of silences and ellipsesNarrators often left unnamed for openness
Recurring Motifs
Animals (especially dogs)Loss and mourningSilence and aftereffects

Legacy

Amy Hempel is a leading contemporary short story writer in English, acclaimed for her minimalist, spare prose and emotional depictions often mediated by animals. She has influenced younger writers as a teacher and received multiple literary awards.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Quotes

  • “I think there's a purity of feeling there that humans can connect with if we're lucky, or if we're looking for it.”
    Source: BOMB Magazine (interview, 1997) (1997)

Trivia

  • Dog enthusiast and founding board member of the Deja Foundation.
  • With support from Gordon Lish, published her first short story collection.
  • One of the few writers to build a reputation primarily on short fiction.