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Joel Redon

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Joel Redon's grave at Spring Valley cemetery in Zena, Oregon

Joel Redon (November 15, 1961 – June 6, 1995) was an American author from Oregon.

Early life and education

Redon was born Bruce Randolph Didzun in Portland, Oregon.[1] Redon studied writing at New York University and with Paul Bowles at The American School of Tangier in Morocco.[2] While in New York, Redon wrote for the Village Voice.[3]

Redon was befriended by M. F. K. Fisher, to whom he would send manuscripts.[4] Her praise for Redon's The Road to Zena is printed on the book's jacket.[5] They kept up a 6-year correspondence.[3]

Works

His first novel, Bloodstream (1989) is an autobiographical novel about a young man with AIDS who returns to his family in Oregon.[6] A chapter of the book was included in Confronting AIDS Through Literature: The Responsibilities of Representation edited by Judith Lawrence Pastore.[7]

His second and third novels, If Not on Earth, Then in Heaven (1991) and The Road to Zena (1992) were based on his family's history.[8] Heaven tells the story of his ancestor Neoma Matthews.[9] The Road to Zena is a fictionalized account of his great-grandparents who lived in Zena, Oregon.[10] A selection from Zena was included in Reading Portland edited by John Trombold and Peter Donahue.[11]

Redon planned to write a series of four novels about his ancestors.[12]

Later life and death

Joel Redon was diagnosed with AIDS in 1986.[2]

He died at age 33 of complications of AIDS in Sonoma County, California.[1] He has a square in the AIDS Memorial Quilt.

He is buried in the cemetery of the Spring Valley Presbyterian Church (Zena Church) in Zena.

Further reading

References

  1. ^ a b "Redon, Joel Bruce". Polk County, Oregon Pioneer Cemeteries. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Joel Redon papers [manuscript], circa 1970-1992". Oregon Historical Society.
  3. ^ a b "Catalogue 146: Rare & Fine Books, Including Recent Acquisitions". Rulon-Miller Books. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  4. ^ Reardon, Joan (2004). Poet of the Appetites: The Lives and Loves of M.F.K. Fisher. North Point Press. p. 439. ISBN 978-0-86547-562-5. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  5. ^ Redon, Joel (1992). The Road to Zena. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-07791-2.
  6. ^ Summers, Claude J., ed. (2002). Gay and Lesbian Literary Heritage. Routledge. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-415-92926-4. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  7. ^ Pastore, Judith Lawrence, ed. (1993). Confronting AIDS Through Literature: The Responsibilities of Representation. University of Illinois. p. 158. ISBN 0-252-06294-9. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  8. ^ "If Not On Earth, Then in Heaven". Kirkus Reviews. May 1, 1991. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  9. ^ "Revealing Angel". Publishers Weekly. June 1, 1991. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  10. ^ "The Road to Zena". Kirkus Reviews. April 15, 1992. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  11. ^ "Reading Portland". University of Washington Press. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  12. ^ "The Road to Zena". Publishers Weekly. January 1, 1992. Retrieved August 10, 2014.



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