Author
Alison Lurie
Birth Date
September 3, 1926
(94 Years)
Death Date
December 3, 2020
Associated Country
United States
Alison Lurie was an American novelist, short story writer, and academic known for her sharp, often satirical portrayals of academic life and social relationships. She was born in Chicago, Illinois and later became closely associated with Cornell University, where she taught for many years. Her experiences in university settings strongly influenced much of her fiction.
Lurie is best known for her novel Foreign Affairs (1984), which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1985. The book explores the romantic and cultural misadventures of two American academics in London, blending humor with insight into human behavior and relationships. Her other works, such as The War Between the Tates, also examine marriage, ambition, and the complexities of modern life.
In addition to fiction, Lurie wrote essays and books for children, and she was admired for her wit, intelligence, and keen observational style. She remains an important figure in American literature, particularly for her contributions to the “campus novel” and her nuanced, often ironic perspective on society.
Lurie is best known for her novel Foreign Affairs (1984), which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1985. The book explores the romantic and cultural misadventures of two American academics in London, blending humor with insight into human behavior and relationships. Her other works, such as The War Between the Tates, also examine marriage, ambition, and the complexities of modern life.
In addition to fiction, Lurie wrote essays and books for children, and she was admired for her wit, intelligence, and keen observational style. She remains an important figure in American literature, particularly for her contributions to the “campus novel” and her nuanced, often ironic perspective on society.
Books
Words and Worlds 2020
A Pulitzer-prize-winning American novelist has compiled a charming, illuminating strand of essays that span from her first blundering writing efforts as Radcliffe College student, to later life when,...
Now in paperback from the Pulitzer-Prize-winning author who the Wall Street journal pronounces to be “bracingly subversive” and whose “adroit observations” bring a new resonance to the appreciation of...
Jane is a widow facing unexpected encounters, and Alan, a man grappling with his own demons. As his condition deteriorates, the couple's relationship becomes increasingly strained. Jane finds herself...
Foreign Affairs 2006
Virginia Miner, a fifty-something, unmarried tenured professor, is in London to work on her new book about children’s folk rhymes. Despite carrying a U.S. passport, Vinnie feels essentially English...
Are some of the world's most talented children's book authors essentially children themselves? In this engaging series of essays, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alison Lurie considers this theory,...
Familiar Spirits 2002
Alison Lurie, one of America's greatest novelists, has written a loving memoir of world-famous poet James Merrill and his longtime partner David Jackson. Drawing on her forty-year friendship with...
Women and Ghosts 1995
The author of The War Between the Tates and the Pulitzer prize-winning Foreign Affairs now brings her irresistible wit to the ghost story.
In nine spooky tales, Alison Lurie writes of women haunted...