David Guterson ( ; born May 4, 1956) is an

American novelist This is a list of novelists from the United States, listed with titles of a major work for each. This is not intended to be a list of every American (born U.S. citizen, naturalized citizen, or long-time resident alien) who has published a novel. ...

, short story writer, poet, journalist, and essayist. He is best known as the author of the bestselling

Japanese American internment Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

novel ''

Snow Falling on Cedars ''Snow Falling on Cedars'' is a 1994 novel by David Guterson. Guterson, a teacher, wrote the book in the early morning hours over ten years then quit his job to write full-time. Plot Set on the fictional San Piedro Island in the Strait of Juan ...

''.

Early life

Guterson was born May4, 1956 in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

the son of criminal defense lawyer Murray Guterson. He attended

Seattle Public Schools Seattle Public Schools is the largest Public school (government funded), public school district in the state of Washington (state), Washington. The school district serves almost all of Seattle. Additionally it includes sections of Boulevard Park, ...

and Roosevelt High School, then the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

, where he earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in English literature and a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

in creative writing. He is also a

Guggenheim Fellow Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

Teaching, writing

Before writing professionally, Guterson worked as a teacher for 10 years at Bainbridge High School. During that time he began having stories and essays published in small magazines and periodicals, and eventually sold pieces to ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'', ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'' and ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

''. His first book, ''The Country Ahead of Us, the Country Behind'' (1989) is a collection of short stories set mostly in the Pacific Northwest. His second book, ''Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense'' (1992) contains essays on family and education. Guterson's freelance journalism included articles on environmental issues, travel writing and human interest features.

''Snow Falling on Cedars'', subsequent work

Guterson is best known as the author of ''

'' (1994), for which he received the 1995

PEN/Faulkner Award The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction is awarded annually by the PEN/Faulkner Foundation to the authors of the year's best works of fiction by living American citizens. The winner receives US$15,000 and each of four runners-up receives US$5000. Fi ...

. To date, it has sold nearly four million copies and was adapted into the 1999 film of the same title. His subsequent novels include ''

East of the Mountains ''East of the Mountains'' is a novel by American author David Guterson, first published in 1999, and in paperback in 2000. His second full novel, it marks something of a change of pace from the taut courtroom drama of ''Snow Falling on Cedars'' ...

'' (1999), ''Our Lady of the Forest'' (2003), ''The Other'' (2008) and ''Ed King'' (2011).

Personal life

Guterson married his wife Robin when he was 23. They live on

Bainbridge Island Bainbridge Island is a city and island in Kitsap County, Washington. It is located in Puget Sound. The population was 23,025 at the 2010 census and an estimated 25,298 in 2019, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County. ...

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...

and have five children and three grandchildren. He is a co-founder of Field's End, an organization for writers.

Bibliography

* ''The Country Ahead of Us, the Country Behind: Stories'' (1989) * ''Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense'' (Non-fiction) (1992) * ''

'' (1994) * ''The Drowned Son'' (Stories)(1996) * ''

'' (1999) * ''Our Lady of the Forest'' (2003) * ''The Other'' (2008) * ''Ed King'' (2011) * ''Songs for a Summons'' (Poetry) (Feb. 10, 2014) * ''Problems with People: Stories'' (June 3, 2014) * ''Turn Around Time: A Walking Poem for the Pacific Northwest'' (September 2019) * ''The Final Case'' (January 11, 2022)

References

External links

David Guterson biographyDavid Guterson
on fantasticfiction.co.uk
David Guterson
at the Internet Book List {{DEFAULTSORT:Guterson, David 1956 births Living people American male journalists 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male essayists American male novelists American male poets Homeschooling advocates Writers from Seattle University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni Writers from Bainbridge Island, Washington PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction winners American male short story writers 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Washington (state) Jewish novelists