Lydia Davis (Author of The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis)

Lydia Davis鈥檚 Followers (1,417)

Lydia Davis

Born

in Northampton (Massachusetts), The United States

July 15, 1947

Website

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Nonfiction

edit data

Lydia Davis, acclaimed fiction writer and translator, is famous in literary circles for her extremely brief and brilliantly inventive short stories. In fall 2003 she received one of 25 MacArthur Foundation 鈥淕enius鈥� awards. In granting the award the MacArthur Foundation praised Davis鈥檚 work for showing 鈥渉ow language itself can entertain, how all that what one word says, and leaves unsaid, can hold a reader鈥檚 interest. . . . Davis grants readers a glimpse of life鈥檚 previously invisible details, revealing new sources of philosophical insights and beauty.鈥� In 2013 She was the winner of the Man Booker International prize.

Davis鈥檚 recent collection, 鈥淰arieties of Disturbance鈥� (May 2007), was featured on the front cover of the 鈥淟os Angeles Times Bo Lydia Davis, acclaimed fiction writer and translator, is famous in literary circles for her extremely brief and brilliantly inventive short stories. In fall 2003 she received one of 25 MacArthur Foundation 鈥淕enius鈥� awards. In granting the award the MacArthur Foundation praised Davis鈥檚 work for showing 鈥渉ow language itself can entertain, how all that what one word says, and leaves unsaid, can hold a reader鈥檚 interest. . . . Davis grants readers a glimpse of life鈥檚 previously invisible details, revealing new sources of philosophical insights and beauty.鈥� In 2013 She was the winner of the Man Booker International prize.

Davis鈥檚 recent collection, 鈥淰arieties of Disturbance鈥� (May 2007), was featured on the front cover of the 鈥淟os Angeles Times Book Review鈥� and garnered a starred review from 鈥淧ublishers Weekly.鈥� Her 鈥淪amuel Johnson Is Indignant鈥� (2001) was praised by 鈥淓lle鈥� magazine for its 鈥淗ighly intelligent, wildly entertaining stories, bound by visionary, philosophical, comic prose鈥攑art Gertrude Stein, part Simone Weil, and pure Lydia Davis.鈥�

Davis is also a celebrated translator of French literature into English. The French government named her a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her fiction and her distinguished translations of works by Maurice Blanchot, Pierre Jean Jouve, Michel Butor and others.

Davis recently published a new translation (the first in more than 80 years) of Marcel Proust鈥檚 masterpiece, 鈥淪wann鈥檚 Way鈥� (2003), the first volume of Proust鈥檚鈥淚n Search of Lost Time.鈥� A story of childhood and sexual jealousy set in fin de siecle France, 鈥淪wann鈥檚 Way鈥� is widely regarded as one of the most important literary works of the 20th century.

The 鈥淪unday Telegraph鈥� (London) called the new translation 鈥淎 triumph [that] will bring this inexhaustible artwork to new audiences throughout the English-speaking world.鈥� Writing for the 鈥淚rish Times,鈥� Frank Wynne said, 鈥淲hat soars in this new version is the simplicity of language and fidelity to the cambers of Proust鈥檚 prose鈥� Davis鈥� translation is magnificent, precise.鈥�

Davis鈥檚 previous works include 鈥淎lmost No Memory鈥� (stories, 1997), 鈥淭he End of the Story鈥� (novel, 1995), 鈥淏reak It Down鈥� (stories, 1986), 鈥淪tory and Other Stories鈥� (1983), and 鈥淭he Thirteenth Woman鈥� (stories, 1976).

Grace Paley wrote of 鈥淎lmost No Memory鈥� that Lydia Davis is the kind of writer who 鈥渕akes you say, 鈥極h, at last!鈥欌€攂rains, language, energy, a playfulness with form, and what appears to be a generous nature.鈥� The collection was chosen as one of the 鈥�25 Favorite Books of 1997鈥� by the 鈥淰oice Literary Supplement鈥� and one of the 鈥�100 Best Books of 1997鈥� by the 鈥淟os Angeles Times.鈥�

Davis first received serious critical attention for her collection of stories, 鈥淏reak It Down,鈥� which was selected as a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award. The book鈥檚 positive critical reception helped Davis win a prestigious Whiting Writer鈥檚 Award in 1988.

She is the daughter of Robert Gorham Davis and Hope Hale Davis. From 1974 to 1978 Davis was married to Paul Auster, with whom she has a son, Daniel Auster. Davis is currently married to painter Alan Cote, with whom she has a son, Theo Cote. She is a professor of creative writing at University at Albany, SUNY.
Davis is considered hugely influential by a generation of writers including Jonathan Franzen, David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers, who once wrote that she "blows the roof off of so many of our assumptions about what constitutes short fiction." ...more

Combine Editions
Lydia Davis鈥檚 books

Average rating: 4.07 · 103,586 ratings · 10,916 reviews · 339 distinct works 鈥� Similar authors

	The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis 4.24 avg rating — 6,814 ratings — published 2009 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Can't and Won't 3.58 avg rating — 5,235 ratings — published 2014 — 41 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The End of the Story 3.62 avg rating — 3,054 ratings — published 1994 — 38 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Varieties of Disturbance 3.82 avg rating — 2,351 ratings — published 2007 — 23 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Break It Down 4.02 avg rating — 2,172 ratings — published 1986 — 26 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Samuel Johnson Is Indignant 3.96 avg rating — 1,692 ratings — published 2001 — 18 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Almost No Memory 3.98 avg rating — 1,259 ratings — published 1997 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Our Strangers: Stories 3.76 avg rating — 854 ratings — published 2023 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Essays One 4.28 avg rating — 743 ratings — published 2019 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Cows (Quarternote Chapbook Series) 4.08 avg rating — 516 ratings — published 2011 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Lydia Davis…

Sometimes when you go on vacation, your problems come right along with you.聽 That鈥檚 what Keru and Nate discover when they vacation in Cape Cod...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Seasonal Read...: 25.10 - Belinda's Task - Let's Play The Name Game	50	197	May 31, 2010 10:18AM
100+ Books in 2025: Michael's 100 Books for 2010	68	198	Jan 14, 2011 01:34PM
flight paths: February 14.5000000001 to February 29th	15	18	Feb 29, 2012 05:00AM
Fantasy Book Club...: Nominations open for our next series!	90	207	Mar 21, 2012 07:23PM
Reading with Style: Spring 2012 20.10 - Liz M's task - It's academic	43	89	Apr 17, 2012 09:58AM
The Sword and Laser: Hyp: Hyperion and Canterbury	32	170	May 06, 2012 11:30PM
The Sword and Laser: Hardest Book you have read!!!	149	736	Sep 02, 2012 01:46PM
Challenge: 50 Books: K's 2013 50,000 goal (pages)	29	94	Jan 05, 2013 10:13AM

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite Lydia to 欧宝娱乐.

欧宝娱乐

Lydia Davis鈥檚 Followers (1,417)

Lydia Davis

Combine EditionsLydia Davis鈥檚 books

Related News

Topics Mentioning This Author

Combine Editions
Lydia Davis鈥檚 books