Virginia Sorensen
Virginia Sorensen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Virginia Louise Eggertsen February 17, 1912 |
| Died | December 24, 1991 |
| Alma mater | Brigham Young University |
| Years active | 1942-1978 |
| Notable awards | 1957 Newberry Medal |
| Spouse | Frederick C. Sorensen Alec Waugh |
Virginia Sorensen (née Eggertsen), also credited as Virginia Sorenson[1] (February 17, 1912–December 24, 1991), was an American regionalist writer. Her role in Utah and Mormon literature places her within the "lost generation" of Mormon writers. She was awarded the 1957 Newberry Medal for her children's novel, Miracles on Maple Hill.[2]
Biography
Virginia Sorensen was born to Helen ElDiva Blackett and Claud E. Eggertsen in Provo, Utah, but grew up in Manti and American Fork, Utah.[3] Her mother identified as a Christian Scientist, and her father was described as a "Jack Mormon." Because of this, Sorensen wrote from a liminal position between Mormon and mainstream western American life.[3] Of this circumstance, Sorensen said of her siblings and herself, “we all felt obliged to be especially good and bright because our parents weren’t active church people.”[4] From an early age, Sorensen wrote poetry and told stories to friends and family.[5]
Sorensen attended Brigham Young University, where she met her first husband, Frederick C. Sorensen, who taught English at a local high school.[6] She graduated from BYU with a bachelor's degree in journalism.[7] The couple moved several times throughout their 25 years of marriage for Frederick's work. While living in Terre Haute, Indiana, where Frederick was a professor at what is now Indiana State University, Sorensen published her first novel, A Little Lower Than the Angels. Her publisher, Alfred Knopf, wrote in the book jacket, "I have seldom introduced a new novelist with the confidence I feel in the author of this remarkable book. It marks the debut, I believe, of a major American writer."[7] The novel approached the history of Mormon Polygamy with realism which was poorly received in Utah, despite the novel doing well elsewhere in America. "She sought to please her...Mormon contemporaries, yet was surprised to find her efforts tarred with suspicion."[3]
Sorensen wrote several Mormon-themed books.[1][8] Despite this, Sorensen said of herself, "As a writer and as a person, I can honestly say that I am not particularly interested in Mormons.”[9] As a regionalist author, she primarily drew inspiration from the places where she was living and often based her characters directly on people she knew or had met.[2][9] Her first book for children, Curious Missy, grew out of her efforts helping her county in Alabama obtain a bookmobile,[7] and her 1957 John Newbery Medal-winning Miracles on Maple Hill was based in the Erie, Pennsylvania region where she lived at that time.[2] She received two Guggenheim fellowships, one in 1946 to study a tribe of Mexican Indians for her novel The Proper Gods, and one in 1954 to study the history of Sanpete Valley's settlers in Denmark.[8] Her collection of short stories, Where Nothing is Long Ago, was described by Eugene England as "essentially a collection of personal essays rather than short stories," but Sorenson reaffirmed that the collection is fictional.[10]
Sorensen had two children with her first husband: Frederick Sorensen Jr. and Elizabeth Sorensen Herbert. In 1958 she divorced Frederick, and in 1969 married author Alec Waugh at the rock of Gibraltar. She later converted to Anglicanism at Waugh's request.[7] Sorensen and Waugh resided primarily in Morocco but moved back to the states when Alec's health began to fail in 1980. [3]
After Alec passed away, Sorensen moved to North Carolina, where she passed away at the age of 79. Her ashes were buried in the Provo Cemetery, next to her mother and sister.[3]
IN 1991, Sorensen was granted a Honorary Lifetime Membership in the AML
Bibliography
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See also
References
- ^ a b "Virginia Sorensen, Mormon Novelist". Ldsfilm.com. Retrieved 2010-07-05.
- ^ a b c Erie Hall of Fame Archived 2013-07-07 at the Wayback Machine, accessed April 26, 2012
- ^ a b c d e Whitley, Colleen, ed. (2009-10-30). Worth Their Salt Too. Utah State University Press. doi:10.2307/j.ctt4cgpjz. ISBN 978-0-87421-766-7.
- ^ Hoipkins, Lee Bennett (1974). "Virginia Sorensen...". More Books by More People. 1974: 323–329.
- ^ ""IF YOU ARE A WRITER, YOU WRITE!" AN INTERVIEW WITH VIRGINIA SORENSEN". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 13: 17–36. 1980.
{{cite journal}}: line feed character in|title=at position 34 (help) - ^ Sorensen, Virginia (1997). A Little Lower Than the Angels. Salt Lake City: Signature Books. pp. v–xx. ISBN 1-56085-103-1. OCLC 37910192.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ a b c d Bradford, Mary Lythgoe (1992). "In Memoriam: Virginia Sorensen". Sunstone (magazine): 15–17.
- ^ a b "Virginia Sorensen - Kids Encyclopedia | Online Encyclopedia | Kids Online Dictionary | Britannica". Kids.britannica.com. 1912-02-17. Retrieved 2012-04-26.
- ^ a b Sorensen, Virginia (1953). "Is it true?--The novelist and his materials". Utah Humanities Review. 7: 283–292.
- ^ Geary, Edward A. (1990). "A 'visitable past' Virginia Sorensen's Sanpete". Utah Historical Quarterly. 58: 216–231 – via issu.
External links
- Virginia Sorensen manuscript books, MSS 2103, at Brigham Young University, Harold B. Lee Library, L. Tom Perry Special Collections
- Virginia Sorensen Waugh at Find a Grave
- Virginia Sorensen at Library of Congress Authorities — with 26 catalog records
