Black History: Edward P. Jones
"The hitter can never be the judge. Only the receiver of the blow can tell you how hard it was, whether it would kill a man or make a baby just yawn."
- From The Known World
Edward P. Jones is a New York Times best-selling author and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. He received the distinction for his first novel (and second book), The Known World. Set in pre-Civil War Virginia, the book tells the story a black slaveowner, as well as a larger story about America. The New York Times book review noted that the novel "penetrates a realm of contradictions and takes the measure of slavery's punishments."
Through his words, Jones gives voice to the stories of men and women often overlooked and too often ignored. His first book, Lost in the City, features short stories about working class African Americans in Washington DC, where he grew up. His third book, All Aunt Hagar's Children, also collected short stories about his native city of Washington DC. Some of the pieces published in the New Yorker are combined in the book with new stories about average -- yet at the same time remarkable -- men and women as they struggle and attempt to live their lives.
With stories and characters so memorable, Jones crafts a powerful narrative with an eye on compassion and truth. And while it exists in a world of fiction, his books nevertheless shine a bright light on many of the struggles that this country has faced in the past, along with those that continue to this day. It is for this reason that his talent as a writer makes him one of the most important writers today.
Jones worked his way to an English degree at the College of the Holy Cross and an MFA at the University of Virginia. He wrote a tax newsletter for 19 years before finally writing his first book in 1992.
His humble origins are an inspiration to all who know his personal story. His family moved in and out of eighteen different apartments in eighteen years of his life, finding themselves living in poverty and without the presence of the father. His mother, whom he credits with being "the greatest influence in [his] life," worked in a restaurant as a dishwasher. She worked hard to provide a better life for her children, and while unable to read or write herself, she managed to raise a Pulitzer Prize winner.
This hugely important and gifted writer has earned a special place in American history for his words and stories that continue to move us. And as we remember the ongoing contributions of Edward P. Jones, we also remember those individuals represented in his stories that have all-too-often been overlooked in the past.
For more biographies in celebration of black history month, click here.
