SU’s Mary Karr awarded Guggenheim Fellowship

SU’s Mary Karr awarded Guggenheim FellowshipSeptember 03, 2004Edward Byrnesedbyrnes@syr.edu

Best-selling author and Syracuse University Professor Mary Karr was recently awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for Poetry by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Karr is currently on a leave of absence from the creative writing program at SU to spend a year writing in Manhattan, but will continue to serve as the Peck Professor of Literature at SU.

“Mary Karr, as one of the nation’s most illustrious poets and memoirists, is so richly deserving of this honor,” says Cathryn R. Newton, dean of SU’s College of Arts and Sciences.

A Texas native, Karr is the author of “The Liars’ Club” (Viking, 1995), an autobiographical novel that, among its numerous accolades, was described as “a classic of American literature” in The New York Times Magazine. The book was recognized with a PEN/Martha Albrand Award, was named a Notable Book by the American Library Association and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. It remained on the bestseller lists for more than a year. Five years later, Karr re-entered the bestsellers list with her second memoir, “Cherry” (Viking, 2000). Karr has also written three poetry collections: “Abacus” (Wesleyan University Press, 1987), “The Devil’s Tour” (New Directions, 1993) and “Viper Rum” (Penguin Poets, 1998). Karr joined SU as an assistant professor in 1991.

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation provides fellowships for advanced professionals in all fields (natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, creative arts) except the performing arts. It was founded in 1925 by former Sen. Simon Guggenheim and his wife Olga Hirsch Guggenheim, in memory of their son who died at a young age in 1922. The Foundation offers fellowships to further the development of scholars and artists by assisting them to engage in research in any field of knowledge and creation in any of the arts, under the freest possible conditions and irrespective of race, color or creed. The average amount of a Fellowship grant in 2003 was approximately $35,747.