Southeast: Region Six
Paul, Richard A.
March 27, 1957 -
Place of Birth: Detroit, MI
Place of Principle Residence: Macomb, MI
Biography:
Richard A. Paul was born to Marion and Frank Paul in Detroit, MI. At age eleven he learned ventriloquism, which sparked a lifetime career as an author, vantriloquest, and speaker. Paul earned his Associates in marketing at Macomb College in 1978, and a BA in communiciation in 1981 at Oakland University. He is the CEO of Duck Sense, a creative company offering motivational programs. Paul has authored several books, including The Magic Telescope, that incorporate humor along with life lessons, and has spoken to over 600,000 businesses and schools. Currently Paul lives in Macomb, MI with his wife, Leesa, and his three children, Nicholas, Colin, and Jasmine.
Selected Works:
- The Magic Telescope (1996)
- Red Riding Hood Races the Big Bad Wolf (1999)
Awards:
- Speaker Ladder Award (International Platform Association)
- Best Speaker Awards (Toastmaster International)
- Best children’s Book Category (Mid-American Publishers Association)
- Recipient of annual advance skill training from the National Speakers Association and NSA Michigan
- Award winning Author “Honorable Mention” Midwest Publishers Association
Critical Reception:
For Red Riding Hood Races the Big Bad Wolf:
“Paul dispenses with the multi-level symbolism of the folk tale in favor of a single themed self-esteem/morality lesson, namely that a child in a wheelchair can accomplish whatever she sets out to do if only she believes in herself and gets confident support from her friends and family. While that lesson may appear to be directed at children with special needs, the book also works with able-bodied children. Parents and educators will likely find this book a useful tool in encouraging positive thinking for special needs children and their peers.”
- Fore Word Magazine
“A modern spoof of an old fairy tale, This Red Riding Hood has mobility and speed advantages: she uses a wheelchair. Red Riding Hood Races the Big Bad Wolf is geared to reading levels 3-7, but it’s funny and hip and few adults would be able to read it to a child without chuckling to themselves.”
- Detroit Feee Press
“A wonderful book that delights it’s readers with a more humorous approach to the ever increasing knowledge that success is developed even at a young age and stems from a person’s ability to utilize that which has been made available to her along with the desire to reach far beyond those set of boundries.”
- Ablity Magazine
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Paul was born and educated in Michigan. He currently lives in Macomb, MI where he runs a successful company, Duck Sense.
Peck, William H.
October 2, 1931 -
Place of Birth:
Place of Principle Residence:
Biography
William H. Peck was born to Mildred and William Peck in Savannah, Georgia. He attended Ohio State University and Wayne State University, graduated from the latter in 1961 with a Master’s Degree. Employed by the Detroit Institute of the Arts in 1960, Peck started as a curator in the education department and began a lifelong study on art and Egyptian history. Over the years, Peck has composed articles for journals, books, dictionaries, and encyclopedias, in addition to authoring his own books on Ancient Egypt and the history of the Detroit Institute of the Arts. The duration of his research has also led him to work as a field archaeologist with New York University and the Brooklyn Museum at Egypt excavations, and to give lectures across the United States. Peck now works as the senior curator for the Detroit Institute of the Arts and lives with his wife, Mildred, in Detroit and has four children: Alice An, Sarah, Louise, and William.
Selected Works:
- Splendors of Ancient Egypt (1997)
- Fann al-rasm ‘inda qudama’al-Misriyin (1987)
- Drawings from Ancient Egypt (1978)
Awards:
- 1962 Ford Motor Co. of England - Travel Grant
- 1971 American Research Center in Egypt Fellowship
- 1975 Smithsonian Instution Travel Grant
- 1985 Wayne State U. Award in the Arts for Distinguished Alumnus
Critical Reception
For Drawings from Ancient Egypt:
“The attractive book under review with its sixteen colour plates and 132 monochrome illustrations of drawings on ostraka, papyri, walls, and ceramics is likely to appeal to art-lovers who find it hard to come to terms with the impersonality of monumental Egyptian art. A brief introduction by Cyril Aldred explains the context of these scattered works, and William Peck provides a survey and informative commentaries of the illustrations. Here one’s only regret might be that the indications of measurements—so relevant in many cases—are relegated to the list of plates at the end of the book.”
- The Gombrich Archive
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Peck has been employed at the Detroit Institute of the Arts since 1960. Besides using his experience there to study, write, and educate, he has also authored a book on the history of the Detroit Institute of the Arts.
Peeradina, Saleem
October 5, 1944 -
Place of Birth: Bombay, India
Place of Principle Residence: Adrian, MI
Biography:
Saleem Peeradina was born to Noorunnisa and Habib Peeradina in Bombay, India. He graduated from St. Xavier’s College with a BA in 1967, a MA at Bombay University in 1969, and another MA at Wake Forest University in 1973. After earning his Masters degree, Peeradina worked several jobs in Bombay, including as a director at Sophia College for Women and a copywriter for Hindusthan Thompson Associates. In 1989 he moved with his family to teach English at Siena Heights College in Adrian, MI. Peeradina has published several books of poetry, including First Offence in 1980 and Group Portrait (1992). He has given readings across the world, and draws inspiration for his poetry from his life in Bombay. Peeradina lives in Adrian, Michigan with his wife and has two children: Shoneizi and Lail.
Selected Works:
- First Offence (1980)
- Group Portrait (1992)
Awards:
- 1983 British Council Writer’s Grant
- 1971 Fulbright Travel Grant
Critical Reception:
For The Ocean In My Yard:
This unmissable honesty, coupled by the lure of tender nostalgia, takes the reader on a pleasant cruise to the past. There are no tempestuous adventures along the route, but one is unlikely to miss them. A great fan of old Hindi melodies, Peeradina sang his favourite from Awara at the book launch: “Dum bhar tho udhar muh phere, oh chanda… Main unse pyar kar loongi, batein hazar kar loongi.” As you read The Ocean... you want the tumultuous present to look the other way, for a while, and allow us the pleasure of a brief banter with a lyrical past.
- The Hindu (India’s National Newspaper)
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Saleem Peeradina has taught English at Siena Heights College since 1989.
Penn, William S.
March 21, 1949 -
Place of Birth: Los Angles, CA
Place of Principle Residence: East Lansing, MI
Biography:
William S. Penn was born in Los Angles, CA in 1949. Throughout his life he has lived in many regions of the U.S., as well as in England. In 1971 he graduated from the University of California with an A.B. and an M.A., and in 1979 graduated with his Doctorate of the Arts from Syracuse University. He has taught the State University of New York, Pace University, and Hostos Community College before becoming a professor at Michigan State University, giving courses in oral tradition, comedy and cultural survival, literature of the Americas, and creative writing. Penn has published fiction, essays, and reviws, drawing inspiration from his urban mixed blood Nez Perce heritage. He has received numerous awards, including the New York Foundation for the Arts Prize, and the Distinguished Faculty Award from Michigan State University. Penn lives in East Lansing, MI with his wife Jennifer and has two children: Rachel Antonia and William Anthony.
Selected Works:
- The Absence of Angels (1994)
- All My Sins Are Relatives (1995)
- Killing Time with Strangers (2000)
Awards:
- 1970 Departmental Citation for the Outstanding Undergraduate in English
- 1977, 1979 Stephan Crane Prize in Fiction
- 1979 Michael Alssid Prize
- 1979 University Research Fellowship
- 1979 Departmental Citation for Distinguished Work
- 1982 Honorable Mention, James B. Phelan Awards
- 1983 Montalvo Center for the Arts Fellowship
- 1983 Yaddo Fellowship
- 1984 Finalist, Iowa School of Letters Award for Short Fiction
- 1985 Supporting Grant, Ludwig Vogelstein Foundation
- 1987 Finalist, P.E.N. Nelson Algren Awards
- 1988 New York Foundation for the Arts Prize
- 1988 All University Research Initiation Grant, Michigan State University
- 1990 Michigan Council for the Arts Grant
- 1991 Nominated for Pushcart Prize
- 1994 North American Indian Prose Award, University of Nebraska Press, All My Sins are Relatives
- All University Research Completion Grant, Michigan State University
- 1996 Critic’s Choice Award for the Most Acclaimed Books of 1995-96, All My Sins are Relatives
- 1997 Native American Writer of the Year in Non-fiction, Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers
- 1998 Native American Editor of the Year, Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers
- 2000 American Book Award for Literary Merit, Killing Time with Strangers
- 2003 Writer of the Year in Creative Prose, Wordcraft Circle, Feathering Custer
- Distinguished Faculty Award by Michigan State University
Critical Reception:
For All My Sins Are Relatives:
“All My Sins Are Relatives is both a beautifully wrought memoir and an important addition to the body of critical writing on Native American literature. The book is demanding in its sometimes dense prose and complexly developed images and ideas, but it yields rich rewards. “All good stories contain in themselves something about the act of storytelling or storywriting ... and usually a discoverable awareness of this aesthetic.” By Penn’s own definition, All My Sins are Relatives is a good story, and one of the pleasures of reading it is the depth and clarity with which he expresses this aesthetic.”
- Jeanne Rosier Smith, Professor of American Literature at Seton Hall University
“What more can be said about a book that has to be read to the end in order to get to the beginning? That Killing Time with Strangers is unlike any novel you have read before? Or perhaps that it is agonizingly familiar, giving us glimpses of a young man finding his precarious way in life? But when the power of dreaming is unleashed, time becomes negotiable and life’s joys and sorrows go up for grabs. And as sure as yellow butterflies will morph into Post-It notes, you will know you have experienced a new and utterly captivating way of looking at the world.”
- The University of Arizona Press
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Penn draws on his ethnic heritage to serve as a professor at Michigan State University. He has taught courses in oral tradition, comedy and cultural survival, Literature of the Americas, and creative writing, all of which play a role in his writing.
Perkins, Agnes Regan
April 28, 1926 -
Place of Birth: Helena, MT
Place of Principle Residence: Ann Arbor, MI
Biography:
Agnes Regan Perkins was born to Thomas and Agnes Regan I Helena, Montana. She earned her BA and MA at the University of Montana in 1947 and 1949, respectively. While earning her MA Perkins was briefly a teaching fellow, and after graduation worked at Eastern Michigan University from 1961 to 1986 as a professor of English Language and Literature. Perkins has published many books about children’s literature and poetry, most of which she has co-authored. Currently she lives in Ann Arbor, MI with her husband William and has three children: Todd, Aaron, and Stuart.
Selected Works:
- Dictionary of British Children’s Fiction (1989)
- Dictionary of American Children’s Fiction, 1859-1959 (1985)
- This Land Is Our Land: A Guide to Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults (1994)
Critical Reception:
For Dictionary of British Children’s Fiction:
“Dictionary of British Children’s Fiction is a worthy companion to its precursors. . . . Many will enjoy simply browsing this fascinating reference book.”
— Reference Books Bulletin
“For convenience, and quality, this set plus its companion dictionaries may become the reference source of choice in children’s literature. A must buy for all libraries!”
— Choice
Relevance of Place to Author’s Work:
Ever since 1961, Perkins has lived and taught in Michigan. During her professional career she wrote and published many books on children’s literature with her colleagues.