Kathleen Norris
Kathleen Norris was born in Washington, DC and grew up "all over", but spent most of her childhood summers in South Dakota. After high school in Honolulu and college at Bennington in Vermont, she worked in New York City as arts administrator at the Academy of American Poets.
In 1971, while still in her early twenties, her first book of poetry was published. Soon afterward, she returned to her grandparents' house in Lemmon, South Dakota.
This move was the inspiration for her award-winning bestseller, Dakota: A Spiritual Geography. It was a New York Times Notable Book for the Year, a New York Times Bestseller, and was selected as one of the best books of the year by Library Journal. Her two books of prose following Dakota, The Cloister Walk and Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, were also New York Times Notable Books of the Year and New York Times Bestsellers.
Since 1986, Norris has been an oblate of a Benedictine monastery in North Dakota, and The Cloister Walk was based on her two years in residence at the Ecumenical Institute, St. John's Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota.
Kathleen Norris is the recipient of grants from the Guggenheim and Bush Foundations. Her personal narratives, essays, and poetry have been published in a wide range of anthologies, magazines, and journals, including The New Yorker, and the New York Times Magazine. She has published five books of poetry, including Little Girls in Church and Journey: New and Slected Poems. She has written several popular essays on monasticism that appeared in the Gettysburg Review, The Hungry Mind Review, The Massachusetts Review, and The North Dakota Quarterly. Her most recent book for adults is The Virgin of Bennington (Riverhead Books).
Ms. Norris is married to the poet David Dwyer. They divide their time between South Dakota and Hawaii.
Interview provided by the publisher.
Reviews
The Holy Twins
Kathleen Norris
Illustrated by Tomie dePaola
As Tomie told me in our interview, he really wanted to have Kathleen Norris write the text for this book. Their collaboration is a true delight. Norris tells the fascinating and inspiring story of the twins Benedict and Scholastica who were best friends as children and who eventually found their own paths to God. Benedict as part of a noble family was sent to Rome to study while Scholastica went to a monastery to learn to read and write. Benedict was troubled by the way slaves were treated and also by the rivalry and power struggles that he encountered in Rome. He did not wish to fulfill his family's desire to become a well-paid civil official. Instead Benedict became a hermit, living in a cave and devoting his life to prayer. He became well known as a holy man. Several times other monks and priests tried to get rid of him with poisoned bread and wine, but each time he was saved. He finally founded a monastery at Monte Cassino. Benedict and his sister met annually to exchange views and keep up with their respective lives. They died fairly close in time and were buried in the same tomb. Throughout the story Tomie shows scenes from their parallel lives. It is two stories intertwined in one book. The message of sibling devotion and deeply held religious beliefs shines through. The concluding pages contain The Amazing Rule of St. Benedict - written over 1500 years ago and entirely applicable to today. There is also a short bibliography for those who wish to learn more. 2001, Putnam, Ages 6 up, $16.99. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot
ISBN: 0-399-23424-1
Added 04/16/02
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