Don Lee (author)
Encyclopedia
Don Lee is an American
novelist who spent his childhood in Tokyo and Seoul as the son of a State Department officer. He received his B.A.
in English Literature
from University of California, Los Angeles
(UCLA) and his M.F.A.
in Creative Writing
from Emerson College
. He has also served as the primary editor of the literary journal Ploughshares
for 17 years. Lee's earlier work have appeared in GQ, New England Review, American Short Fiction, Kenyon Review, and Glimmer Train, with Voir Dire anthologized in Charlie Chan is Dead 2. He has also received fellowships from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the St. Botolph Club Foundation.
His first collection of short stories, Yellow
, documents the lives of various Asian American characters living in the fictional Rosarita Bay. Yellow won the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction
from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He followed that collection with the novel Country of Origin, which earned an American Book Award
and an Edgar Award for Best First Novel.
In 2008, Lee finished a new novel called Wrack and Ruin. The book, which revisits the fictional town of Rosarita Bay, was published by W.W. Norton in April 2008. Lee was formerly a faculty member of the Creative Writing department at Macalester College
. In the fall of 2008, Lee moved to the faculty of Western Michigan University
where he taught both graduate and undergraduate courses. He is currently in the faculty of the Creative Writing program at Temple University
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
novelist who spent his childhood in Tokyo and Seoul as the son of a State Department officer. He received his B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
from University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
(UCLA) and his M.F.A.
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in Creative Writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
from Emerson College
Emerson College
Emerson College is a private coeducational university located in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of oratory," Emerson is "the only comprehensive college or university in America dedicated exclusively to communication and the arts in a liberal arts...
. He has also served as the primary editor of the literary journal Ploughshares
Ploughshares
Ploughshares is an American literary magazine founded in 1971 by DeWitt Henry and Peter O'Malley in The Plough and Stars, an Irish pub in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since 1989, Ploughshares has been based at Emerson College in the heart of Boston...
for 17 years. Lee's earlier work have appeared in GQ, New England Review, American Short Fiction, Kenyon Review, and Glimmer Train, with Voir Dire anthologized in Charlie Chan is Dead 2. He has also received fellowships from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the St. Botolph Club Foundation.
His first collection of short stories, Yellow
Yellow (Don Lee)
Yellow is a collection of short stories written by American novelist Don Lee. "Set in the fictional California town of Rosarita Bay, Don Lee's Yellow is a fresh, contemporary vision of what it means to be Asian in America, a post-immigrant examination of identity, race, and love...
, documents the lives of various Asian American characters living in the fictional Rosarita Bay. Yellow won the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction
Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction
The Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction is awarded by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The $5,000 prize is given for the best published first novel or collection of short stories in the preceding year...
from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He followed that collection with the novel Country of Origin, which earned an American Book Award
American Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
and an Edgar Award for Best First Novel.
In 2008, Lee finished a new novel called Wrack and Ruin. The book, which revisits the fictional town of Rosarita Bay, was published by W.W. Norton in April 2008. Lee was formerly a faculty member of the Creative Writing department at Macalester College
Macalester College
Macalester College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 as a Presbyterian-affiliated but nonsectarian college. Its first class entered September 15, 1885. The college is located on a campus in a historic residential neighborhood...
. In the fall of 2008, Lee moved to the faculty of Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
where he taught both graduate and undergraduate courses. He is currently in the faculty of the Creative Writing program at Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
.
External links
- www.don-lee.com Don Lee's Official Site
- http://narrativemagazine.com/issues/fall-2004/diplomacy Novel excerpt at Narrative Magazine
- Don Lee bio at Temple University