News and Events
Features
Ohio State MFA Alum Named among “Best of Young American Novelists”
Christopher Coake, graduate of Ohio State’s MFA program and author of the short story collection We’re In Trouble, was recently named one of Granta Magazine’s “Best of Young American Novelists,” a list which features twenty young writers.
The New York-based magazine included Janathan Franzen, Lorrie Moore, and Jeffrey Eugenides on the 2006 ‘Best of Young American Novelists” list. This year’s list can be viewed at http://www.bestyoungnovelists.com/Granta-97-Best-of-Young-American-Novelists-2-2007.
“Chris’ stories are among the best I've ever read by anyone, in or out of the MFA program,” said Michelle Herman, professor at Ohio State and Coake’s former thesis director. “They're heartbreaking, whip-smart, and wise. When I gave his thesis to my agent to read, she started reading it on the subway, but she had to stop, she said, because she was crying.”
“[Coake] deserves every honor he accrues—truly” Professor Herman said. “And this is a big one—a very big one.”
Coake’s stories previously appeared in Five Points, Epoch, Gettysburg Review and The Southern Review. In 2006, he was awarded the Robert Bingham Fellowship for best debut fiction from PEN American Center. He is currently at work on a novel set in turn-of-the-last-century Colorado. A native of Indiana, Coake lives in Reno with his wife Stephanie Lauer and their two dogs, where he teaches creative writing at the University of Nevada.
