Kelly Cherry is the author of twenty books of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction; eight chapbooks; and translations of two classical plays. Her recent titles include a collection of short stories titled The Woman Who (Boson Books, 2010), a memoir titled Girl in a Library: On Women Writers & the Writing Life (BkMk Press, 2009), and The Retreats of Thought: Poems (Louisiana State University Press, 2009). Cherry is the current Poet Laureate of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Other honors include the Hanes Prize for Poetry from the Fellowship of Southern Writers, fellowships from the NEA and the Rockefeller Foundation, and a USIS Speaker Award to the Philippines.  

Photo by Burke Davis III