Elizabeth Strout’s most recent work, Olive Kitteridge, a novel in stories, won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize, was nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and was a New York Times Bestseller. She is the author of two previous novels, Abide With Me, a national bestseller, and Amy and Isabelle, also a New York Times Bestseller. (Photo by Miriam Berkley)
ARTICLE: LoHud.com
November 1, 2009 – Writer Heather Salerno catches up with Elizabeth Strout before her scheduled appearance at Manhattanville College.
EXCERPT:
Elizabeth Strout won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction a long six months ago, but she’s still giddy about being awarded American literature’s top honor.
And why not? Since joining the esteemed rank of writers, which includes the likes of Hemingway, Faulkner, Mailer and Morrison, she’s gone from under-the-radar author to name-brand novelist. Her books have shot up bestseller lists, and she’s been invited to receptions, readings and literary festivals around the world.
Even Hollywood has become a fan. Oscar winner Frances McDormand (”Burn After Reading”) recently optioned the movie rights to Strout’s winning work, “Olive Kitteridge,” a collection of connected short stories featuring Kitteridge, a forceful and sometimes scary junior high school teacher.
But while all the fuss has been fun, Strout wants to get back to what she does best: writing.
With so much traveling, she recently went six long weeks without putting pen to paper (literally, since she writes longhand). So she’s looking forward to sitting down at the kitchen table in her Upper East Side apartment, where she’ll finish her next novel, tentatively titled “The Burgess Boys.”
Despite her busy schedule, Strout will take time out Tuesday night to participate in Manhattanville College’s “Meet the Writers” series. And she cheerfully agreed to answer a few questions before the free event.
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