Valerie Martin
Encyclopedia
Valerie Martin is an American
novelist and short story writer. She has also taught at Mount Holyoke College
, Loyola University New Orleans
, The University of New Orleans
, The University of Alabama
, and Sarah Lawrence College
, among other institutions. She is a graduate of the MFA Program for Poets & Writers
at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She has one child, Adrienne, born in 1975. She has been married twice, first to Robert Martin and later to James Watson and currently lives with her life partner John Cullen.
Her novel Property
(2003) won the prestigious Orange Prize
. Her other fictional works include Set in Motion (1978), Alexandra (1979), A Recent Martyr (1987), The Consolation of Nature and Other Stories (1988), The Great Divorce (1993), Italian Fever
(1999), The Unfinished Novel and Other Stories (2006), and Trespass (2007), as well as Salvation: Scenes from the Life of St. Francis (2001), a biography of St. Francis of Assisi. Her most recent novel, The Confessions of Edward Day, was published in August 2009.
Her 1990 novel, Mary Reilly
, a retelling of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde from the point of view of a servant in the doctor's house, was released in 1996 as the Columbia TriStar Pictures
film, Mary Reilly
. It is directed by Stephen Frears
and stars John Malkovich
as Dr. Jekyll and Julia Roberts
as Mary.
The short subject
film Surface Calm (2001) is based on her short story of the same title from her first book, Love (1977).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
novelist and short story writer. She has also taught at Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a liberal arts college for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It was the first member of the Seven Sisters colleges, and served as a model for some of the others...
, Loyola University New Orleans
Loyola University New Orleans
Loyola University New Orleans is a private, co-educational and Jesuit university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Originally established as Loyola College in 1904, the institution was chartered as a university in 1912. It bears the name of the Jesuit patron, Saint Ignatius of Loyola...
, The University of New Orleans
University of New Orleans
The University of New Orleans, often referred to locally as UNO, is a medium-sized public urban university located on the New Orleans Lakefront within New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. It is a member of the LSU System and the Urban 13 association. Currently UNO is without a proper chancellor...
, The University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, and Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College
Sarah Lawrence College is a private liberal arts college in the United States, and a leader in progressive education since its founding in 1926. Located just 30 minutes north of Midtown Manhattan in southern Westchester County, New York, in the city of Yonkers, this coeducational college offers...
, among other institutions. She is a graduate of the MFA Program for Poets & Writers
MFA Program for Poets & Writers
The MFA Program for Poets & Writers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is a graduate creative writing program.-History:The MFA Program for Poets & Writers was founded in the 1960s by poet Joseph Langland and is part of the English Department at the University of Massachusetts...
at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She has one child, Adrienne, born in 1975. She has been married twice, first to Robert Martin and later to James Watson and currently lives with her life partner John Cullen.
Her novel Property
Property (novel)
Property is a 2003 novel by Valerie Martin, and was the winner of the 2003 Orange Prize.The book is set on a sugar plantation near New Orleans during the 1830s, and tells the story of Manon Gaudet, the wife of the plantation's owner, and Sarah, the slave Manon was given as a wedding present and who...
(2003) won the prestigious Orange Prize
Orange Prize for Fiction
The Orange Prize for Fiction is one of the United Kingdom's most prestigious literary prizes, annually awarded to a female author of any nationality for the best original full-length novel written in English, and published in the United Kingdom in the preceding year...
. Her other fictional works include Set in Motion (1978), Alexandra (1979), A Recent Martyr (1987), The Consolation of Nature and Other Stories (1988), The Great Divorce (1993), Italian Fever
Italian Fever
Italian Fever is 1999 novel by Valerie Martin.Part romance and part mystery, it tells the story of New Yorker Lucy Stark, who travels to Tuscany to wind up the affairs of her late boss - a writer named DV, who has died after falling down a well while staying at a remote villa...
(1999), The Unfinished Novel and Other Stories (2006), and Trespass (2007), as well as Salvation: Scenes from the Life of St. Francis (2001), a biography of St. Francis of Assisi. Her most recent novel, The Confessions of Edward Day, was published in August 2009.
Her 1990 novel, Mary Reilly
Mary Reilly (novel)
Mary Reilly is a 1990 parallel novel by American writer Valerie Martin. It is a re-working of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1990 and the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1991...
, a retelling of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde from the point of view of a servant in the doctor's house, was released in 1996 as the Columbia TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures
TriStar Pictures, Inc. is an American film production/distribution studio and subsidiary of Columbia Pictures, itself a subdivision of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, which is owned by Sony Pictures...
film, Mary Reilly
Mary Reilly (film)
Mary Reilly is a 1996 film directed by Stephen Frears. The movie was written by Christopher Hampton based on the novel Mary Reilly by Valerie Martin...
. It is directed by Stephen Frears
Stephen Frears
Stephen Arthur Frears is an English film director.-Early life:Frears was born in Leicester, England to Ruth M., a social worker, and Dr Russell E. Frears, a general practitioner and accountant. He did not find out that his mother was Jewish until he was in his late 20s...
and stars John Malkovich
John Malkovich
John Gavin Malkovich is an American actor, producer, director and fashion designer with his label Technobohemian. Over the last 25 years of his career, Malkovich has appeared in more than 70 motion pictures. For his roles in Places in the Heart and In the Line of Fire, he received Academy Award...
as Dr. Jekyll and Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
as Mary.
The short subject
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
film Surface Calm (2001) is based on her short story of the same title from her first book, Love (1977).
Novels
- Set in Motion (1978)
- Alexandra (1979)
- A Recent Martyr (1987)
- Mary ReillyMary Reilly (novel)Mary Reilly is a 1990 parallel novel by American writer Valerie Martin. It is a re-working of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1990 and the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1991...
(1990) - The Great Divorce (1993)
- Italian FeverItalian FeverItalian Fever is 1999 novel by Valerie Martin.Part romance and part mystery, it tells the story of New Yorker Lucy Stark, who travels to Tuscany to wind up the affairs of her late boss - a writer named DV, who has died after falling down a well while staying at a remote villa...
(1999) - PropertyProperty (novel)Property is a 2003 novel by Valerie Martin, and was the winner of the 2003 Orange Prize.The book is set on a sugar plantation near New Orleans during the 1830s, and tells the story of Manon Gaudet, the wife of the plantation's owner, and Sarah, the slave Manon was given as a wedding present and who...
(2003) - Trespass (2007)
- The Confessions of Edward Day (2009)
Collections
- Love: Short Stories (1976)
- The Consolation of Nature, and Other Stories (1988)
- The Unfinished Novel and Other Stories (2006)
Awards
- World Fantasy Best Novel nominee (1991) : Mary Reilly
- Nebula Best Novel nominee (1991) : Mary Reilly
- Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction Best Novel winner (2003) : Property
External links
- Valerie Martin homepage
- Audio recording of Valerie Martin reading from Property at the 2009 Key West Literary Seminar
- 1990 audio interview of Valerie Martin at Wired for Books.org by Don SwaimDon SwaimDon Swaim is an American journalist and broadcaster.Born in Kansas, Swaim earned a degree in broadcast journalism from Ohio University and worked as editor, writer, producer, reporter and anchor at WCBS in New York and CBS in Baltimore....