Gass

William H. Gass accepted the 2007 Truman Capote Award for Literary Criticism in Memory of Newton Arvin on Thursday in the Senate Chamber of the Old Capitol on The University of Iowa campus.

Gass's masterful writing style and linguistic virtuosity has earned him much acclaim during his career. He received grants from the Rockefeller Foundation in 1965 and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation in 1970, as well as Pushcart Prizes in 1976, 1983, 1987, and 1992. He is the author of Omensetter's Luck (1966); In the Heart of the Heart of the Country (1968); Willie Masters' Lonesome Wife (1971), an experimental novella illustrated with photographs and typographical constructs; and Cartesian Sonata and Other Novellas (1998). His latest work of fiction The Tunnel, took him more than 30 years to complete. He has also published several collections of essays, including On Being Blue (1976) and Finding a Form (1996).

A Temple of Texts, Gass's most recent collection of essays, was the focus of this year's 2007 Capote Award. The award, administered for the Truman Capote Estate by the Iowa Writers' Workshop at The University of Iowa, is the largest annual cash prize for literary criticism in the English language.

The Washington Post >>
A Temple of Texts
Washington University >>
William H. Gass wins 2007 Truman Capote Award
The Believer >>
Interview with William Gass
PEN America >>
Online Gass
St. Louis Dispatch >>
In the heart of the country, an honor for Bill Gass