Brady Udall is an American writer. In 2010, he was appointed

Writer-in-Residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

of Idaho, a position he held until 2013.

Biography

Udall grew up in a large

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into severa ...

family in St. Johns, Arizona. He graduated from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

and later attended the

Iowa Writers' Workshop The Iowa Writers' Workshop, at the University of Iowa, is a celebrated graduate-level creative writing program in the United States. The writer Lan Samantha Chang is its director. Graduates earn a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree in Creative W ...

at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 col ...

."Udall Mints a Dickens of a Tale in 'Miracle Life'" by Brandon Griggs, ''

Salt Lake Tribune ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871." History A ...

'', 17 June 2001,
mirror of article
He was formerly a faculty member of

Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It employs 175 full-time faculty members and has a student body of approximately 2,400 full-time students. It was founded upon the merger of Fran ...

starting in 1998, then

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...

, and now teaches writing at

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding ...

. A collection of his short stories titled ''Letting Loose the Hounds'' was published in 1998, and his debut novel ''The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint'' was first published in 2001. The characterization and structure of the latter has been favorably compared to the work of

John Irving John Winslow Irving (born John Wallace Blunt Jr.; March 2, 1942) is an American-Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. Irving achieved critical and popular acclaim after the international success of ''The World According to ...

."Cuesta pulls off 'Miracle' for UA, Cell"
by Michael Fleming, ''Variety'', 13 February 2002 Thematically it has been compared to

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence. Pos ...

has

optioned In the film industry, an option is a contractual agreement pertaining to film rights between a potential film producer (such as a movie studio, a production company, or an individual) and the author of source material, such as a book, play, or s ...

a film adaptation of ''Miracle'', with

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stud ...

hiring

Michael Cuesta Michael Cuesta (born July 8, 1963) is an American film and television director, best known for his independent films, specially for having co-written and directed the 2001 film, ''L.I.E. (film), L.I.E.'' He has directed and produced television se ...

to direct. In July 2007, Udall appeared on an episode of ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internatio ...

''. Udall is the great-great-grandson of David King Udall and his plural wife Ida Hunt Udall. In an interview about his novel ''The Lonely Polygamist'', he said this "strong family connection to polygamy" made it "only right" that he author a novel about a polygamist. Through this heritage, Udall is related to members of the

Udall family The Udall family is a U.S. political family rooted in the American West. Its role in politics spans over 100 years and four generations. Udall politicians have been elected from four different states: Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Oregon ...

, including former U.S. congressman and Interior Secretary Stewart Udall, and former congressman and presidential candidate Morris Udall.

Bibliography

* ''Letting Loose the Hounds'' (stories) (1997) * ''The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint'' (novel) (2001) * '' The Lonely Polygamist'' (novel) (2010)

Notes

External links

* http://books.wwnorton.com/books/Author.aspx?id=4902 {{DEFAULTSORT:Udall, Brady 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American Latter Day Saints American male novelists Brigham Young University alumni Living people Mormon studies scholars Udall family Year of birth missing (living people) Iowa Writers' Workshop alumni Poets Laureate of Idaho People from St. Johns, Arizona 20th-century American poets 21st-century American poets American male poets Novelists from Arizona Novelists from Idaho Novelists from Iowa Poets from Arizona 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers