Manning was born and raised in Kentucky, and often writes about the land and culture of his home. His first book of poems, “Lawrence Booth’s Book of Visions,” was chosen by poet and judge W.S. Merwin for the Yale Series of Younger Poets Award. His subsequent books include “A Companion for Owls: Being the Commonplace Book of D. Boone, Lone Hunter, Back Woodsman, &c.,” “Bucolics,” “The Common Man,” which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in poetry, and “The Gone and the Going Away.”
He grew up listening to stories of his father’s childhood spent on a farm in Eastern Kentucky and has been inspired by the lives of his grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and a great-great-grandmother. Inventive and historical, his work reflects his heritage and a respect for the natural world.
Manning received fellowships from the Fine Art Work Center in Provincetown, Mass., and the Guggenheim Foundation. He has taught at DePauw University and Indiana University, and is on faculty in the MFA program at Warren Wilson College and the Sewanee Writing Conference. He is currently a professor of English at Transylvania University.
Established in 1974 in memory of YHC alumnus James R. Heinze, the annual Heinze Lecture brings speakers to campus to discuss themes and ideas that encourage college spirit and offer inspiration to the entire college community. Traditionally, the lecture focuses on Southern or Appalachian topics.
For more information about this event, call (706) 379-5104.
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/maurice-manning
