Josephine Winslow Johnson (June 20, 1910 – February 27, 1990) was an American novelist, poet, and essayist. She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction has been awarded for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life. It originated as the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, which was awarded between 1918 and 1947.-1910s:...

 in 1935 at age 24 for her first novel, Now in November

Now in November

Now in November is a 1934 novel by Josephine Johnson. It received the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1935.-External links:*...

. Shortly thereafter, she published Winter Orchard, a collection of short stories that had previously appeared in Atlantic Monthly, Vanity Fair

Vanity Fair (magazine)

Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...

, The St. Louis Review, and Hound & Horn

Hound & Horn

Hound & Horn, originally subtitled "a Harvard Miscellany", was a literary quarterly founded by Harvard undergrads Lincoln Kirstein and Varian Fry in 1927...

. Of these stories, "Dark" won an O. Henry Award

O. Henry Award

The O. Henry Award is the only yearly award given to short stories of exceptional merit. The award is named after the American master of the form, O. Henry....

 in 1934, and "John the Six" won an O. Henry Award

O. Henry Award

The O. Henry Award is the only yearly award given to short stories of exceptional merit. The award is named after the American master of the form, O. Henry....

 third prize the following year. Johnson continued writing short stories and won three more O. Henry Awards: for "Alexander to the Park" (1942), "The Glass Pigeon" (1943), and "Night Flight" (1944).

Johnson was born June 20, 1910, in Kirkwood, Missouri

Kirkwood, Missouri

Kirkwood is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,540. Founded in 1853, the city is named for James Pugh Kirkwood, builder of the Pacific Railroad through that town. It was the first planned suburb located west...

. She attended Washington University in St. Louis

Washington University in St. Louis

Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...

 from 1926 to 1931, but did not earn a degree. She wrote her first novel, Now In November, while living in her mother's attic in Webster Groves, Missouri

Webster Groves, Missouri

Webster Groves is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 22,995 at the 2010 census. The city is named after New England politician Daniel Webster....

. She remained on her farm in Webster Groves and completed Winter Orchard in 1935. She published four more books before marrying Grant G. Cannon, editor in chief of the Farm Quarterly, in 1942. The couple moved to Iowa City, where she taught at the University of Iowa

University of Iowa

The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...

 for the next three years. They moved to Hamilton County, Ohio

Hamilton County, Ohio

As of 2000, there were 845,303 people, 346,790 households, and 212,582 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,075 people per square mile . There were 373,393 housing units at an average density of 917 per square mile...

 in 1947, where she published Wildwood.

Johnson had three children: Terence, Ann, and Carol. The Cannons continued to move beyond the advancing urban sprawl of Cincinnati, finally settling on the wooded acreage in Clermont County, Ohio

Clermont County, Ohio

Clermont County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, just east of Cincinnati. As of 2010, the population was 197,363. Its county seat is Batavia...

, which is the setting of The Inland Island. In 1955, Washington University awarded her an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. She published four more books before her death, from pneumonia, on February 27, 1990, in Batavia, Ohio

Batavia, Ohio

Batavia is a village in and the county seat of Clermont County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,617 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Batavia is located at ....

, at age 79.

Works

• Now in November
  Now in November
  Now in November is a 1934 novel by Josephine Johnson. It received the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1935.-External links:*...
  
  (novel, 1934), for which she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize
  Pulitzer Prize
  The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
  
  
• Winter Orchard and Other Stories (short stories, 1936)
• Jordanstown (novel, 1937)
• Year's End (poetry, 1939)
• Paulina Pot (children's book, 1939)
• Wildwood (novel, 1947)
• The Dark Traveler (novel, 1963)
• The Sorcerer's Son and Other Stories (short stories, 1965)
• The Inland Island (essays, 1969), with illustrations by Mel Klapholz (republished in 1996 with illustrations by Annie Cannon, the author's daughter)
• Seven Houses: A Memoir of Time and Places (memoir, 1973)
• The Circle of Seasons with Dennis Stock (1974)