Jon Hassler

Jon Hassler

Jon Hassler (March 30, 1933 - March 20, 2008) [http://www.twincities.com/allheadlines/ci_8639287?nclick_check=1] was an American writer and teacher known for his novels about small-town life in Minnesota. He held the positions of Regents Professor Emeritus and Writer-in-Residence at St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota.

Biography

Jon Hassler was born in Minneapolis, but spent his formative years in the small Minnesota towns of Staples and Plainview, where he graduated from high school. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from St. John's University in 1955. While teaching English at three different Minnesota high schools, he received his Master of Arts degree in English from the University of North Dakota in 1960. He continued to teach at the high school level until 1965, when he began his collegiate teaching career: first at Bemidji State University, then Brainerd Community College (now called Central Lakes College), and finally at Saint John's, where he became the Writer-in-Residence in 1980.

During his high-school teaching years, Hassler married and fathered three children. His first marriage lasted 25 years. He had two more marriages; the last was to Gretchen Kresl Hassler.

In 1994, Hassler was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy, a disease similar to Parkinson's. It caused vision and speech problems, as well as difficulty walking, but he was able to continue writing. He was reported to have finished a novel just days before his death.

The Jon Hassler Theater in Plainview, Minnesota, is named for him.

Works

Much of Hassler's fiction involves characters struggling with transitions in their lives or searching for a central purpose. Many of his major characters are Catholic (or lapsed Catholics), and his novels frequently explore the role that small town life plays in shaping, or limiting, human potential.

Readers of Hassler's novels eventually will notice a number of recurring characters: for instance, Miles Pruitt (the protagonist in "Staggerford", who is referred to in "A Green Journey", "The Love Hunter", and "The New Woman"); Agatha McGee (in "Staggerford", "A Green Journey", "Dear James", "The Staggerford Flood", and "The New Woman"); Larry Quinn (in "The Love Hunter" and "Rockery Blues"); and Frank Healy (in "North of Hope" and "The New Woman").

Novels

*"Staggerford" (1977)
*"Simon's Night" (1979)
*"The Love Hunter" (1981)
*"A Green Journey" (1985)
*"Grand Opening" (1987)
*"North of Hope" (1990)
*"Dear James" (1993)
*"Rookery Blues" (1995)
*"The Dean's List" (1998)
*"The Staggerford Flood" (2002)
*"The Staggerford Murders" (2004)
*"The New Woman" (2005)

hort story collections

*"Keepsakes and Other Stories" (2000)
*"Rufus at the Door and Other Stories" (2000)

Nonfiction

*"Saint John's in Pictures" - Introduction (1994)
*"My Staggerford Journal" (1999)
*"Good People... from an Author's Life" (2001)
*"Stories Teachers Tell" (2004)

Children's literature

*"Four Miles to Pinecone" (1977)
*"Jemmy (novel)" (1980)

hort Stories within Other Collections

*"Inheriting the Land", edited by Mark Vinz and Thom Tammaro ("The Undistinguished Poet," 1993)
*"Imagining Home", edited by Mark Vinz and Thom Tammaro ("Remembering Houses," 1995)

External links

* [http://home.comcast.net/~ktebo/ Jon Hassler's official website]
*The [http://www.jonhasslertheater.org/ Jon Hassler Theater] , which is a not for profit theater affiliated with the Rural America Arts Partnership, is located in Plainview, Minnesota.
*worldcat id|id=lccn-n79-113791

----


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Jon Hassler Theater — The Jon Hassler Theater is a professional live theater located in Plainview, Minnesota. History In 1999 the International Harvester Implement building was purchased by the Rural American Arts Partnership to be come the theater itself. Back in… …   Wikipedia

  • Hassler — (also Haßler, Häßler, Hässler, Hasler, ...) is a surname of Swiss origin. Famous people of this name include: *Ferdinand Rudolph Hassler, first Coast Survey superintendent **Hassler A steamship named after him *Hans Leo Haßler (1564–1612) was a… …   Wikipedia

  • University of North Dakota — Motto Lux et Lex (Latin) Motto in English Light and Law Established 1883 …   Wikipedia

  • Université du Dakota du Nord — University of North Dakota Devise Lux et Lex (Latin) Informations Fondation 1883 Type Publique, Space grant Dotation $94.0 million[1 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Staggerford — is Jon Hassler s first novel, published in 1977. The novel is about a quaint, middle sized community, told through the life of English teacher Miles Pruitt. The novel chronicles the life of Miles over one week, starting from Friday October 30 and …   Wikipedia

  • List of people from Minnesota — This is a list of notable persons who were born or spent important time in the state of Minnesota. People not born in Minnesota are marked with §. Contents: Top · 0–9 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 …   Wikipedia

  • List of Catholic authors — The authors listed on this page should be limited to those who identify as Catholic authors in some form. This does not mean they are necessarily orthodox in their beliefs. It does mean they identify as Catholic in a religious, cultural, or even… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Guggenheim Fellowships awarded in 1980 — 1980 U.S. and Canadian Fellows = # John N. Abelson, Chairman, Professor of Chemistry, California Institute of Technology: 1980. # Charles Altieri, Professor of English, University of California, Berkeley: 1980. # William P. Arend, Head, Division… …   Wikipedia

  • School and university in literature — School in literature= *Thomas Bailey Aldrich: The Story of a Bad Boy [http://classicreader.com/booktoc.php/sid.1/bookid.1269/] *Laurie Halse Anderson: Speak *Christine Anlauff: Good morning, Lehnitz *F. Anstey: Vice Versa *Louis Auchincloss: The… …   Wikipedia

  • Plainview, Minnesota — Infobox Settlement official name = Plainview, Minnesota settlement type = City nickname = motto = imagesize = image caption = image imagesize = image caption = image mapsize = 250px map caption = Location of Plainview, Minnesota mapsize1 = map… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

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