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Gordon Bowker (writer)

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Gordon Bowker
Gordon Bowker, 1996, courtesy of Rhoda Bowker
Gordon Bowker, 1996, courtesy of Rhoda Bowker
BornGordon Philip Bowker
1934
Died14 January 2019
Occupation
  • Lecturer
  • journalist
  • biographer
NationalityEnglish
GenreBiography
SpouseRamdei Rhoda Bowker

Gordon Bowker(1934 – 14 January 2019)[1]was an English journalist and academic who wrote biographies[2]ofMalcolm Lowry,Lawrence Durrell,George OrwellandJames Joyce.

Life and works[edit]

Bowker grew up in aBirminghamdevastated by bombing during theSecond World War,where he attendedgrammar schoolatKing Edward VI Camp Hill.At the age of 16, he struck out on his own by travelling toAustraliafor two years sheep farming, followed by three years in theRAF[3]serving inCyprusandEgypt.Bowker had always wanted to write, which drew him in to teaching back in Birmingham, qualifying fromSaltley Collegein 1957.

Later, he went on to read English, Sociology and Philosophy atNottinghamandLondon Universities,where he completed his Ph.D.[4]Bowker was a lecturer atGoldsmiths' Collegefrom 1966 to 1991[5]when he began writing dramas and documentaries for radio and television[6]as well as stories, articles and reviews forThe Independent,[7]The Observer,The Sunday Times,The Times Literary Supplement,The New York Times,[8]Slightly Foxed,The London Magazine,Plays and Players,The Listener,The Times Educational SupplementandThe Illustrated London News.[9]

After leaving Goldsmiths' College in 1991, Bowker focused his attention on writing literary biography, starting withPursued by Furies: a Life of Malcolm Lowry,which he originally published in 1993.[10]His first biography became aNew York TimesBest Seller and "Notable Book of the Year" in 1995.[11]The following year, Bowker publishedThrough the Dark Labyrinth: a Biography of Lawrence Durrell.[12]

Over the next five years, Bowker turned his attention to George Orwell, publishing a biography of Orwell in 2003[13]to commemorate a century since that writer's birth. Over the next few years, Bowker expanded his Orwell interests, promoting the re-publication of a book that revealed insights in to Orwell’s childhood (Eric & Us), and actively participating in the establishment ofThe Orwell Society,writing articles forThe Orwell Foundation[14]as well asOrwell Direct.[15]In 2011, Bowker published what was to be his last book,James Joyce: a New Biography.[16]

In 2022, theSociety of Authorscreated a new prize called theGordon Bowker Volcano Prize,awarded for a novel "focusing on the experience of travel away from home", endowed by Bowker's widow, named for Malcolm Lowry's novelUnder the Volcano.[17]

References[edit]

  1. ^Bowker, Gordon Philip."Probate".Gov.UK.UK Government Probate.Retrieved22 September2020.
  2. ^MacMillan Publishers."Gordon Bowker".MacMillan Publishers.MacMillan.Retrieved15 September2020.
  3. ^Penguin Books."Gordon Bowker".Penguin Random House UK.Penguin.Retrieved15 September2020.
  4. ^Bowker, Gordon."Accounts of Authorship: an analysis of the construction of literary subjects".Senate House Library.University of London.Retrieved15 September2020.
  5. ^Bowker, Gordon."Gordon Bowker".Encyclopedia.com.Encyclopedia.com.Retrieved15 September2020.
  6. ^Faber."Authors".Faber Literary Blog.Faber.Retrieved14 September2020.
  7. ^Bowker, Gordon."Olivia Manning: a life, by Neville & June Braybrooke".Independent.Independent.Retrieved23 September2020.
  8. ^Macmillan."Authors".Macmillan Publishers.US Macmillan.Retrieved14 September2020.
  9. ^Higham, David."Authors".David Higham Literary Agents.David Higham.Retrieved14 September2020.
  10. ^Bowker, Gordon (1993).Pursued by Furies: a Life of Malcolm Lowry.London: St. Martin's Press.ISBN978-0-312-12748-0.
  11. ^The New York Times (10 December 1995)."Best Sellers".The New York Times.No. 10 December 1995 - Section 7, page 42. The New York Times.Retrieved23 September2020.
  12. ^Bowker, Gordon (1996).Through the Dark Labyrinth: a Biography of Lawrence Durrell.London: St. Martin's Press.ISBN978-0-349-11551-1.
  13. ^Bowker, Gordon (2003).Orwell.London: St. Martin's Press.ISBN978-0-349-11551-1.
  14. ^Bowker, Gordon."The Biography Orwell Never Wrote".The Orwell Foundation.The Orwell Foundation.Retrieved23 September2020.
  15. ^The Orwell Society."History".The Orwell Society.The Orwell Society.Retrieved23 September2020.
  16. ^Bowker, Gordon (2011).James Joyce: A New Biography.London: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.ISBN978-0-374-17872-7.
  17. ^Anon."The Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize".The Society of Authors.The Society of Authors.Retrieved23 May2022.
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