Mary McGarry Morris

Mary McGarry Morris (born February 10, 1943) is an American novelist, short story author and playwright from New England. She uses its towns as settings for her works. In 1991, Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times described Morris as "one of the most skillful new writers at work in America today"; The Washington Post has described her as a "superb storyteller"; and The Miami Herald has called her "one of our finest American writers".She has been most often compared to John Steinbeck and Carson McCullers. Although her writing style is different, Morris also has been compared to William Faulkner for her character-driven storytelling. She was a finalist for the National Book Award and PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. As of 2011, Morris has published eight novels, some of which were best-sellers, and numerous short stories. She also has written a play about the insanity trial of Mary Todd Lincoln. Morris was born in Meriden, Connecticut and raised in Rutland, Vermont. She resides in Andover, Massachusetts with her husband Michael W. Morris. They have five children, twelve grandchildren and one great-grandchild.Her first novel, Vanished, was nominated for high awards. It was the first that many people knew she was working at writing. Before writing full-time, Morris had worked as a social worker for the Massachusetts Department of Public Welfare in Lawrence, Massachusetts. A number of her novels are set in fictional towns in Vermont while parts of Vanished, A Hole in the Universe and The Lost Mother are set in Massachusetts.