authors
February 28, 2025
A sweet new read
Sujin Witherspoon, UW alumna and full-time author, describes her writing process and explores her identity in a Q&A.
February 24, 2024
Raves for novelist
E.J. Koh’s debut novel affirms her place among powerful American storytellers.
November 26, 2023
Wit and whiteout
Haidee Merritt charms readers with her droll and deprecating illustrations about Type 1 diabetes.
November 24, 2023
An exhilarating story
Author Daniel James Brown recalls writing "The Boys in the Boat": "Anxiety quickly gave way to exhilaration."
June 10, 2023
Robinson’s words
Marilynne Robinson's remarks upon receiving the University of Washington's Alumna Summa Laude Dignata Award
June 4, 2023
Down to earth
Blending her own story with tales of climate crisis negotiations, Brianna Craft shows us the world in her memoir.
A KKK ‘monster’ story
Timothy Egan’s latest book, “A Fever in the Heartland," centers on the rise and undoing of D.C. Stephenson, a grand dragon of the KKK
May 29, 2023
Powerful prose
Her Northwest connections played a big part in Marilynne Robinson’s path to becoming one of the most important authors of our time.
February 25, 2023
Drawn to love stories
New Yorker cartoonist Olivia de Recat captures relationships in her book ‘Drawn Together.’
November 26, 2022
Treasure in feces
Bryn Nelson followed his love for animals and science to become both a microbiologist and the writer of a book on human feces.
September 9, 2022
Story of Black Seattle
Quintard Taylor tells the stories of Seattle’s small, but influential Black community.
March 5, 2022
The voice of Yakima Valley
While working on her doctorate, Monica De La Torre, ’16, studied the Yakima Valley's Radio Cadena. She shares their stories in “Feminista Frequencies."
March 4, 2022
Autism in the spotlight
Actor Mickey Rowe's book chronicles his journey from a legally blind self-described outcast to the hero of his own story.
November 19, 2021
From pain to poetry
Poet Jane Wong isn’t afraid to lay her emotions bare as she explores ways beyond the written page to reach audiences.
September 4, 2021
The Nisei story
‘Boys in the Boat’ author Daniel James Brown’s new book depicts the heroism of World War II-era Japanese Americans.
June 10, 2021
A Husky to the core
W. Thomas Porter, ’59, served in the army, earned his MBA from the Foster School of Business, taught at the UW, and loved Husky athletics with all his might.
Less can be more
Compared to changes that add, those that subtract are harder to think of. The removal of a bridge in the Bay Area illustrates how sometimes, less is more.
June 3, 2021
‘A child’s eye view’
By the time of her death at the age of 104, Beverly Cleary’s books had sold more than 85 million copies.
May 11, 2021
High-flying professor
Cecilia Aragon’s memoir, “Flying Free,” is for “anybody who has been discouraged all their life,” she says.
March 4, 2021
Private-eye inspiration
Instead, Thoft uses the P.I. skills she learned to write her award-winning detective novels featuring hard-nosed private eye Fina Ludlow.
March 3, 2021
Soul of Seattle
With the city changing rapidly, Ron Chew set out to write about one of its beloved communities. It’s a story only he could tell.
January 11, 2021
Books and conversation
To date, more than 1,600 readers have joined the UW Alumni Book Club, representing alumni from every college and school across all three campuses.
December 16, 2020
Emerging from pain
Britt East’s book “A Gay Man’s Guide to Life” provides realistic ways for gay men to deal with homophobia and live a good life.
December 9, 2020
Healing words
Norman B. Rice’s timing couldn’t have been better for his new book, “Gaining Public Trust: A Profile of Civic Engagement.”
August 4, 2020
Stars in her eyes
Astronomer Emily Levesque’s new book shares the wonder of stargazing—and the adventures it’s taken her on.
June 10, 2020
Stranger than fiction
A writer faces frustration with the release of her first work of fiction during a pandemic.
On the trail with Craig Romano
Hiking book author Craig Romano, ’94, ’97, slowed down long enough to tell us about his passion for nature.
September 28, 2019
Bedtime reading
Charles Johnson rounded up 11 of his “Bedtime Stories” from more than a decade—and added a new one—for a collection titled “Night Hawks: Stories.”
June 2, 2019
World of worry
A new book by UW faculty explores anxiety-provoking topics ranging from food safety to mobile phones and bedbugs.
March 1, 2019
Master of the tearjerker
Tearjerkers and epic female-driven novels have earned Kristin Hannah, '83, an international following.
November 30, 2018
Safe travels
Author and traveler Chris Sanford shares 10 bits of wisdom from his book, “Staying Healthy Abroad: A Global Traveler’s Guide.”
June 4, 2018
Rethinking drugs
Ingrid Walker wants to change the way media and government frame our perceptions about illicit drugs, and the people who use them.
March 3, 2018
Perfectly Claire
Best-selling feminist author Claire Dederer, ’93, on growing up grunge, creating a literary canon for the Northwest, and bad men who create great art.
December 1, 2015
Northwest at heart
Author Langdon Cook infuses his writing with a message of caring for the environment he calls home.
June 1, 2015
Ivan Doig, 1939-2015
Whenever I wander by Smith Hall, I reflect about the home of the UW’s esteemed History Department, as well as the place where, in 1969, a doctoral student wrote a memoir about losing his mother at age 6 and being raised by his father and grandma in hardscrabble Montana. Of course, I am referring to Ivan Doig’s first book.
March 1, 2014
'Silence is a coping mechanism'
Teresa Tamura captures poignant stories of hardship from a World War II relocation center in her book "Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp."
December 1, 2013
Montana mindscape
Ivan Doig's tales of the West have made him one of America's top authors.
June 1, 2013
Home of the freer
The state constitution provides more rights than the U.S. Constitution.
March 1, 2013
Journalist and optimist
Catching up with Robert Merry, ’68, political journalist, former CEO of Congressional Quarterly and author of "Where They Stand: The American Presidents in the Eyes of Voters and Historians."
December 1, 2012
Poetry priestess
Catching up with Kathleen Flenniken, ’88, a civil engineer turned poet. Recently she was appointed Washington State Poet Laureate for 2012–2014.
December 1, 2010
Rick Steves' worldview
Rick Steves, ’78, is an idealist. He doesn’t expect you to agree with him. But he’s not speaking his mind or advocating controversial legal reform to be popular.
September 1, 2009
Words touch our hearts
One of the things I particularly admire about a place as big and complex as the University of Washington is how it can touch us on an intimate manner: through the written word.
Books of revelation
Marilynne Robinson, ’68, ’77, has authored three novels, each of which is regarded as a major contribution to American letters.
September 1, 2008
Stories for 'kids like us'
When a little boy from Yakima asked the librarian for books about “kids like us,” she couldn’t think of any. So Beverly Cleary decided to write them herself.
December 1, 2006
100 books by Huskies
To celebrate the literary achievements of our UW community, the editors of Columns asked 15 faculty, alumni and book publishing professionals to help choose 100 outstanding books by 100 UW authors.
The black TV book
Kathleen Fearn-Banks once worked in TV, and now has written the dictionary on an important part of its history.
Book report
For a long time we’ve wanted to celebrate the creative power of the University of Washington by presenting 100 top books by 100 UW authors. While the idea sounds great on paper, coming up with the final list was no easy task. What follows is an editor’s diary of the selection process.
September 1, 2006
Spreading the word
When they start classes this month, more than 6,000 new UW students will already have something in common — they’ll all have read the same book about a remarkable doctor trying to bring 21st-century medicine to the poorest corners of the planet.
June 1, 2006
‘Common book’
“Mountains Beyond Mountains” was named the UW's first-ever "common book." Every member of the incoming freshman class will be reading the book this summer, and thinking, talking and writing about it this fall.
June 1, 2004
Cleary honored
Beverly Cleary, who has been honored many times for her work, received the honor of a lifetime when she was presented with the National Medal of Arts by President George W. Bush.
March 1, 2004
Lessons to share
“Why don’t you write a book?” UW Football Coach Don James asked former Husky football player Andre Hayes, ’87, a decade ago.
December 1, 2003
Author's inspiration
Michele Torrey, '88, was having trouble finding books for her three teen-age sons. She decided to fix that problem by writing one herself.
September 1, 2003
Earth is doomed
"In 7.5 billion years Earth will either be swallowed up or survive only as a scorched planet."
March 1, 2003
Final countdown
Only 7.5 billion years from now, a burned-out cinder of a planet called Earth will be engulfed by its sun, a bloated red giant that will melt away any evidence that the planet ever existed.
June 1, 2002
Reversal of fortune
For more and more workers, the American Dream is just a mirage, say the authors of a new book.
June 1, 2001
She has answers
Taking the “if you want something done, do it yourself” mentality her parents instilled in her, Carol Bolt, ’94, a Seattle artist, wrote The Book of Answers.
June 1, 1999
‘My favorite teacher’
Nine writers recall how their classroom experiences helped mold their careers.
December 1, 1998
Martyrs and myths
The early Christians weren't all martyrs and they weren't all poor, says a UW sociologist whose book sheds new light on the rise of the Christianity.
September 1, 1993
Bringing words to life
The experience of Seattle's children—and that of children everywhere—is warmer and wiser because of Beverly Cleary's work.
June 1, 1993
Tales of ‘Solidarity’
UW alumnus and retired UW lecturer Richard (Dick) Carbray, '44, '51, has written a new book titled "Prophets of Human Solidarity."
March 1, 1993
Insights on race
"The challenge for America is how to live in peace with its different people. If that's not solved, the country is really in trouble."
September 1, 1992
America on the rocks
The president is the country’s premier political leader, but he also is the nation’s top CEO, running a multitrillion-dollar enterprise.
March 1, 1992
Angelo Pellegrini dies
Angelo Pellegrini's books include "The Unprejudiced Palate," "Wine and the Good Life," "The Food-Lover's Garden," and "Lean Years, Happy Years."
September 1, 1991
Ann Rule, ’53
A former policewoman, Ann Rule began writing true-detective crime in 1968, after a divorce left her with four children to support.
June 1, 1991
Literary fame
UW English Professor Charles Johnson, is holding steady through the months of accolades that have followed winning the 1990 National Book Award in fiction.
March 1, 1991
Johnson wins award
Charles Johnson, UW professor of English, received the 1990 National Book Award for Middle Passage.