Anna Marie Quindlen (born July 8, 1952) is an American author,

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

, and opinion columnist. Her ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' column, Public and Private, won the

Pulitzer Prize for Commentary The Pulitzer Prize for Commentary is an award administered by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism "for distinguished commentary, using any available journalistic tool". It is one of the fourteen American Pulitzer Prizes that are ...

in 1992. She began her journalism career in 1974 as a reporter for the ''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

''. Between 1977 and 1994 she held several posts at ''The New York Times''. Her semi-autobiographical novel ''

One True Thing ''One True Thing'' is a 1998 American drama film directed by Carl Franklin. It tells the story of a woman in her 20s who is forced to put her life on hold in order to care for her mother, who is dying of cancer. The script was adapted by Karen ...

'' (1994) served as the basis for the 1998 film starring

Meryl Streep Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...

and

Renée Zellweger Renée Kathleen Zellweger (; born April 25, 1969) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, she was one of the world's highest-paid ...

Life and career

Anna Quindlen was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, on July 8, 1953, the daughter of Prudence ( née Pantano, 1928–1972) and Robert Quindlen. Her father was Irish American and her mother was Italian American. Quindlen graduated in 1970 from South Brunswick High School in South Brunswick,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and then attended

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, from which she graduated in 1974. She was married to New Jersey attorney Gerald Krovatin, whom she met while in college. Their sons Quindlen Krovatin and

Christopher Krovatin Christopher Krovatin (born 1985) is an American author and musician living in New York City. He has published four novels – ''Heavy Metal and You'' (2006), ''Venomous'' (2008), ''Gravediggers: Mountain of Bones'' (2012, intended as the first i ...

are published authors, and daughter Maria is an actress, comedian and writer. Anna Quindlen left journalism in 1995 to become a full-time

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others asp ...

. In 1999, she joined ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...

'', writing a bi-weekly column until she announced her semi-retirement in the May 18, 2009, issue of the magazine. Quindlen is known as a critic of what she perceives to be the fast-paced and increasingly materialistic nature of modern American life. Much of her personal writing centers on her mother, who died from

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

, when Quindlen was 19 years old. She has written nine novels, several of which have been adapted into motion pictures. ''One True Thing'' was made into a feature film in 1998. It starred

, who received an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination for

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...

for the role. ''Black and Blue'' and ''Blessings'' were made into television movies in 1999 and 2003, respectively. Quindlen participates in

LearnedLeague LearnedLeague is a web-based, invitation-only global quiz league operated by Seattle-based software engineer Shayne Bushfield under the pseudonym "Thorsten A. Integrity". As of September 2022, it has over 26,000 members worldwide. Structure Playe ...

under the name "QuindlenA”.

''One True Thing''

In 1994, her semi-autobiographical novel, titled ''One True Thing'', was published. The book focuses on the relationship between a young woman and her mother, who is dying from cancer. Quindlen's own mother, Prudence Quindlen, died in 1972 while in her 40s from ovarian cancer. At the time Quindlen was a college student, but came home to take care of her mother. In 1998, a film of the same name was released. The movie starred

and

as Kate and Ellen Gulden, fictionalized versions of Prudence and Anna Quindlen. Streep was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year ...

for her performance.

Criticism

Writing in ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hu ...

'', critic Lee Siegel cited Quindlen as an example of the “monsters of empathy” who “self subjugate and domesticate and assimilate every distant tragedy”. He coined the term “The Quindlen Effect” to describe this phenomenon and suggested that it began with her ''Times'' column of December 13, 1992, in which Quindlen assailed the four alleged perpetrators of the

Glen Ridge rape In 1989, an intellectually disabled 17-year-old girl was raped with a broomstick and a baseball bat by members of the Glen Ridge High School football team in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. This event attracted nationwide attention, mainly due to the pe ...

. “True to her niche,” Siegel wrote, “Quindlen attacked with scathing indignation actions that no sane ''Times'' reader would ever defend.” Siegel also referred to Barbara Kingsolver in the same essay, along with Quindlen, derisively as “Nice Queens”. In 1999,

Villanova University Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Penns ...

invited Anna Quindlen to deliver the annual commencement address. But once the announcement was made, a group of anti-abortion students planned a protest against Quindlen's positions on reproductive rights, and she withdrew as speaker. The following year, however, she spoke at Villanova's graduation.

Works

Nonfiction

*''A Quilt of a Country''* (2001) *''Living Out Loud'' (1988) *''Thinking Out Loud'' (1994) *''How Reading Changed My Life'' (1998) *''Homeless'' (1998) *''A Short Guide to a Happy Life'' (2000) from part of a cancelled commencement address that was to be given at Villanova *''Loud and Clear'' (2004) *''Imagined London'' (2004) *''Being Perfect'' (2005) *''Good Dog. Stay.'' (2007) *''Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake '' (2012) *''Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting'' (2019) *''Write for Your LIfe'' (2022)

Novels

* ''Object Lessons'' (1991) *''One True Thing'' (1994) *''

Black and Blue ''Black and Blue'' is the 13th British and 15th American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 23 April 1976 by Rolling Stones Records. This album was the first recorded after former guitarist Mick Taylor qu ...

'' (1998) *''Blessings'' (2002) *''Rise and Shine'' (2006) *''Every Last One: A Novel'' (2010) *''Still Life with Bread Crumbs'' (2013) *''Miller's Valley'' (2016) *''Alternate Side'' (2018)

Children's books

*''The Tree That Came To Stay'' (Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter) (1992) *''Happily Ever After'' (Illustrated by James Stevenson) (1997)

New table pictorials

*'' Naked Babies'' (Photographs by Nick Kelsh) (1996) *''

Siblings A sibling is a relative that shares at least one parent with the subject. A male sibling is a brother and a female sibling is a sister. A person with no siblings is an only child. While some circumstances can cause siblings to be raised separat ...

'' (Photographs by Nick Kelsh) (1998)

Speeches

1999 commencement speech, Mount Holyoke College

2002 commencement speech, Sarah Lawrence College

2006 commencement speech, Colby College

2008 commencement speech, Kenyon College

2009 commencement speech, Wesleyan University

2011 commencement speech, Grinnell College

2017 commencement speech, Washington University in St. Louis

Awards

Industry awards

* 1992

* 2001 Mothers At Home Media Award * 2001

Clarion Award Clarion may refer to: Music * Clarion (instrument), a type of trumpet used in the Middle Ages * The register of a clarinet that ranges from B4 to C6 * A trumpet organ stop that usually plays an octave above unison pitch * "Clarion" (song), a 2 ...

for Best Regular Opinion Column in a magazine * 2002

for Best Opinion Column from the

Association for Women in Communications The Association for Women in Communications (AWC) is an American professional organization for women in the communications industry. History Theta Sigma Phi The Association for Women in Communications began in 1909 as Theta Sigma Phi (), an ho ...

Honorary degrees

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philant ...

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

Denison University Denison University is a private liberal arts college in Granville, Ohio. One of the earliest colleges established in the former Northwest Territory, Denison University was founded in 1831. The college was first called the Granville Literary and ...

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...

, May 2011 *

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...

, May 2006 *

Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is ...

, May 2008 *

Moravian College Moravian University is a private university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The institution traces its founding to 1742 by Moravians, descendants of followers of the Bohemian Reformation under John Amos Comenius. Founded in 1742, Moravian University ...

* Mount Holyoke College * Nantucket High School * Penn State * Sarah Lawrence College * Smith College * Springfield College, May 2018 *

Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely dedicated to mechanical ...

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...

Other awards from universities

* University Medal of Excellence from Columbia * Poynter Fellow in Journalism at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

* Victoria Fellow in Contemporary Issues at

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and w ...

* Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

* Honorary Doctorate from The Pennsylvania State University (Aug.18 2007) * Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from

. (pending for 2017)

Other awards

* 2006 Amelia Earhart Award from Crittenton Women's Union * 2016 inductee into the New Jersey Hall of Fame

References

External links

Anna Quindlen
at

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

*
Anna Quindlen's columns
for ''

''
Anna Quindlen talks about her novel ''Rise and Shine''
''video'' *
Interview on NPR in April 2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quindlen, Anna 1952 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American children's writers American columnists American women novelists Barnard College alumni Wesleyan University people American people of Irish descent American writers of Italian descent Living people Newsweek people Writers from Manhattan People from South Brunswick, New Jersey South Brunswick High School (New Jersey) alumni Pulitzer Prize for Commentary winners Writers from Philadelphia The New York Times columnists American women columnists Writers from New Jersey American women children's writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Pennsylvania 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers