Lois-Ann Yamanaka

Lois-Ann Yamanaka

Lois-Ann Yamanaka (born September 7, 1961 in Hoʻolehua, Molokaʻi, Hawaiʻi) is a Japanese-American poet and novelist from Hawaii. Many of her critically acclaimed literary works are written in Hawaiian Pidgin, and some of her writing has dealt with controversial ethnic issues. In particular, her works confront themes of Asian American families and the local culture of Hawaii.

Among her principal works are:
* "Saturday Night at the Pahala Theatre", a book of poems written in Hawaiian Pidgin (1993)
* "Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers" (1996)
* "Blu's Hanging" (1997)
* "Heads by Harry" (1998)
* "Name Me Nobody" (2000)
* "Father of the Four Passages" (2001)
* "The Heart's Language" (2005)
* "Behold the Many" (2006)

In 1993, "Saturday Night at the Pahala Theatre" received the Pushcart Prize for poetry. Later, in 1994, the Association for Asian American Studies awarded the collection its fiction award.

In 1998, her novel "Blu's Hanging" was also awarded a fiction award by the Association of Asian American Studies. However, amid similar accusations that the book's portrayal of one of the characters perpetuated stereotypes about Filipino men, the board rescinded the award. This action sparked controversy among the Asian American literary community (with noted Asian American authors Amy Tan and Maxine Hong Kingston supporting Yamanaka).

In 2004, a short film, "Silent Years", based on Yamanaka's screenplay was released. It is a story about a thirteen-year-old girl caught between an abusive uncle and a seventeen-year-old boyfriend, who expects a gift for his high school graduation. [ [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2004/Oct/19/il/il01a.html Story of child abuse told in 'Silent Years' - The Honolulu Advertiser - Hawaii's Newspaper ] ]

The April 2007 issue of "Honolulu Magazine" has an excerpt from Yamanaka's upcoming novel, with the working title, "The Mother Mary Stories" [http://www.honolulumagazine.com/currentmonth.aspx?id=17] .

Family

Yamanaka is the oldest of four daughters who grew up in Pahala on the Big Island of Hawaii. Her mother was a school teacher and her father was a school administrator. She is married to John Inferrera who is currently a physical education and health teacher at Washington Middle School in Honolulu, HI. They have a son, John, Jr.

Education

* Hilo High School, Class of 1979 [ [http://starbulletin.com/97/04/08/features/story1.html Honolulu Star-Bulletin Features ] ]
* University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
**B. Ed., 1983
**M. Ed., 1987

Awards

*National Endowment for the Humanities grant, 1990
*Pushcart Prize for Poetry, 1993
*Carnegie Foundation Grant, 1994
*National Endowment for the Arts grant, 1994
*Pushcart Prize, 1994
*Rona Jaffe Award for Women Writers, 1996
*Lannan Literary Award, 1998
*Asian American Literary Award, 1998.

External links

* [http://www.yamanakanaau.com/ Official site]
* [http://www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/pschmid1/engl52a/engl52a.1999/yamanaka.html Two articles on Lois-Ann Yamanaka]
* [http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml%3Fi=19990301%26s=pennybacker "What Boddah You?: The Authenticity Debate," "The Nation", March 1, 1999]
* [http://faculty.washington.edu/kendo/yamanaka.html Lois-Ann Yamanaka profile on Tom Bolling's faculty pages]
*

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Yamanaka — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Akiko Yamanaka (* 1945), japanische Politikerin Lois Ann Yamanaka (* 1961), amerikanische Schriftstellerin Noriko Yamanaka, japanische Tischtennisspielerin Yamanaka Sadanori (* 1921), japanischer Politiker …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Yamanaka — (山中) is a Japanese surname and may refer to various people and places.People* Sadao Yamanaka (1909 1938), a Japanese film director and writer * Tsuyoshi Yamanaka (1939 ), a Japanese olympic swimmer * Sawao Yamanaka (1968 ), the frontman of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Yamanaka — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Yamanaka (山中) peut faire référence à : Akiko Yamanaka (1945 ), un homme politique japanais du parti libéral démocratique, Ino Yamanaka, un personnage …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers — Infobox Book | name = Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers image caption = author = Lois Ann Yamanaka cover artist = Fritz Metsch country = United States and Canada (simultaneously) language = English Hawaiian Pidgin genre = Japanese Americans Hawaii… …   Wikipedia

  • List of writers in Who's Who in Contemporary Women's Writing — Over 400 women writers are listed in Who s Who in Contemporary Women s Writing , edited by Jane Eldridge Miller, Routledge, 2001.A* Leila Abouzeid (born 1950), Moroccan novelist and journalist * Fawziyya Abū Khālid (born 1955), Saudi Arabian poet …   Wikipedia

  • List of poets from the United States — The poets listed below were either born in the United States or else published much of their poetry while living in that country.A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z NOTOC A*Henry Abbey (1842 ndash;1911) *Sam Abrams (born… …   Wikipedia

  • Japanese American — Japanese Americans 日系アメリカ人(日系米国人) Nikkei Americajin(Nikkei Beikokujin) …   Wikipedia

  • Lannan Literary Awards — The Lannan Literary Awards are a series of awards and literary fellowships given out in various fields by the [http://www.lannan.org Lannan Foundation] . The foundation s awards are some of the most lucrative in the world. The 2006 awards for… …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Hawaii — Expand list|date=August 2008 Hawaiokinai has been home to many notable people that have become well known beyond the shores of the islands. Listed below are celebrities that have called Hawaiokinai home during some significant part of their lives …   Wikipedia

  • Susan Schultz (professor) — Susan Schultz (born 1958) is an English professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She specializes in modern and contemporary poetry, American literature, and creative writing. She moved from Virginia to Honolulu in 1990 and is currently a… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”