PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel
1 appearances
-
Edition 16 (1991) Winner
Bernard Cooper
バーナード・クーパー
Bernard Cooper
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1951-10-03 （Hollywood (Los Angeles), California, U.S.）
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English
- Religion
- Judaism
- Residence History
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Career
- Occupations
- novelist, essayist, short story writer, teacher
- Active Years
- 1979-
- Affiliations
- California Institute of the Arts (faculty), Bennington College (faculty), University of Iowa (Bedell Distinguished Visiting Professor), Otis College of Art and Design (faculty), UCLA Extension Writers' Program (instructor), Antioch University Los Angeles (instructor), Scripps College (Mary Routt Chair of Writing, visiting)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California Institute of the Arts | School of Art | Visual Arts/Creative Writing | MFA | 〜1979 | United States |
California Institute of the Arts
School of Art
/ Visual Arts/Creative Writing
Degree:
MFA
Period:
〜1979
Year of Graduation:
1979
Country:
United States
Originally trained in visual arts; shifted focus to writing after graduation.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award (Debut Novel) | Maps To Anywhere | — | Hemingway Foundation/PEN | 受賞 |
| — | O. Henry Award | Truth Serum | — | O. Henry Award organizers | 受賞 |
| — | Guggenheim Fellowship | — | — | John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation | 受賞 |
| — | National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship | — | — | National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) | 受賞 |
Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award (Debut Novel)
1991
Work:
Maps To Anywhere
Organization:
Hemingway Foundation/PEN
Result:
受賞
O. Henry Award
Work:
Truth Serum
Organization:
O. Henry Award organizers
Result:
受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
Organization:
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result:
受賞
National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
Organization:
National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Maps To Anywhere
1990 Short story collectionA collection of short stories with autobiographical elements, exploring memory, family, and sexuality with delicate observation.
familymemorysexualityidentity
A Clack of Tiny Sparks: Remembrances of a Gay Boyhood
1991 Memoir/EssaysA series of memoiristic essays recalling gay boyhood and the process of growing into self-understanding.
coming-of-agesexual identityremembrance
A Year of Rhymes
1993 Essay collectionA book of poetic observations and short essays compiling fragments of personal experience and daily life.
everyday lifeobservationmemory
Truth Serum
1996 Essays/MemoirA candid collection of essays recounting personal episodes, focusing on honesty and the ambiguity of memory.
truthfulnessmemoryself-disclosure
Guess Again
2000 Short stories/essaysA collection that moves between fiction and essay, marked by humor and keen observation.
humorobservationidentity
The Bill From My Father
2006 MemoirA memoir about a complex relationship with his father, including the episode of an itemized 'bill' his father wrote for raising him.
family relationshipsobligationmemory
My Avant-Garde Education
2015 Memoir/EssaysA recollection of art education and personal growth, reflecting on avant-garde art and educational experiences.
art educationavant-gardepersonal growth
Bibliography
- Maps To Anywhere (1990)
- A Clack of Tiny Sparks: Remembrances of a Gay Boyhood (1991)
- A Year of Rhymes (1993)
- Truth Serum (1996)
- Guess Again (2000)
- The Bill From My Father (2006)
- My Avant-Garde Education (2015)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- autobiographical and memoiristic voiceobservational and delicate descriptionblending of essay and prose
- Recurring Motifs
- familymemory and the pastsexual identity (experience as a gay man)art education and creative struggle
Legacy
Acclaimed for essays and short fiction that focus on personal memory, family relationships, and sexuality. He has contributed to American essay literature and LGBTQ literature and is often described as a "writer's writer." As an educator, he has influenced students at several art and writing institutions.
Trivia
- Three older brothers died in their 30s from cancer or heart attacks.
- He recounts an episode in which his father produced an itemized 'bill' for raising him in The Bill From My Father.
- After receiving an MFA from the California Institute of the Arts, he shifted from visual arts to writing.
- Early jobs included working as a shoe salesman.
- He has taught at institutions including California Institute of the Arts, Bennington College, Otis College of Art and Design, and the University of Iowa.