The 'unacknowledged historians'

 

“In a certain way, novelists become unacknowledged historians, because we talk about small, tiny, little anonymous moments that won't necessarily make it into the history books."  – Colum McCann
 

Born on this date in 1964, McCann is a native Irishman who now makes his home in New York City where he is Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing in the Master of Fine Arts program at Hunter College.

 

His work has been published in 40 languages and has appeared in the New Yorker, Esquire, and the Paris Review.  McCann has written 8 novels, including TransAtlantic and the National Book Award-winning Let the Great World Spin.  He also has written 3 collections of short stories, including the multiple-award winning Thirteen Ways of Looking.  His newest book, Twist, is due out in March.

 

 “Every first thing is always a miracle," he said. “The first person you fall in love with. The first letter you receive. The first stone you throw. And in my conception of the novel, the letter becomes important. But what's more important is the fact that we need to continue to tell each other stories.”