James Kilgo (1941-2002) was an American essayist and novelist, known for writing about nature. He was a professor at the University of Georgia.
Early life and education
Kilgo was born June 27, 1941, in Darlington, South Carolina to John Simpson Kilgo and Caroline Lawton. He received a Bachelor of Arts from Wofford College in 1963, then a Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy in American Literature from Tulane University in 1965 and 1972 respectively.
Career
In 1967, Kilgo began teaching at the University of Georgia, where he remained until his retirement in 1999. He released his debut book, an essay collection titled Deep Enough for Ivorybills, with Algonquin Books in 1988, followed by six other non-fiction and fiction texts, including Inheritance of Horses (1994), The Blue Wall (1996), Daughter of My People (1998), The Hand-Carved Creche and other Christmas Memories (1999), The Colors of Africa (2003), and Ossabaw (2004), the last of which were published post-humously. His 1998 novel Daughter of My People won the 2000 Townsend Prize for Fiction. Kilgo was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2011.
Personal life
Kilgo married Jane Guillory on August 27, 1963. The couple had three children.
Kilgo died from cancer on December 8, 2002, in Athens, Georgia.
Publications
- Deep Enough for Ivorybills (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 1988)
- Inheritance of Horses (University of Georgia Press, 1994)
- The Blue Wall: Wilderness of the Carolinas and Georgia (Westcliffe, 1996)
- Daughter of My People (University of Georgia Press, 1998)
- The Hand-Carved Creche and other Christmas Memories (Hill Street Press, 1999)
- The Colors of Africa (University of Georgia Press, 2003)
- Ossabaw: Evocations of an Island (with Jack Leigh, Alan Campbell) (University of Georgia Press, 2004)
References
- ^ "James Patrick Kilgo". Georgia Writers Hall of Fame. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- ^ Arrants, Julia (August 9, 2022). "Kilgo, James Patrick". South Carolina Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
- "Kilgo, James 1941-2002". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
- "Deep Enough Ivorybil by James Kilgo". Publishers Weekly. February 1, 1989. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
- "Daughter of My People by James Kilgo". Publishers Weekly. May 4, 1998. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
- "The Hand-Carved Creche". Kirkus Reviews. November 15, 1999. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- Hayden, Ruth (April 1, 2008). "REVIEW: Colors of Africa". Georgia Library Quarterly. 45 (1). doi:10.62915/2157-0396.1188. ISSN 2157-0396.
- "Townsend Prize for Fiction". New Georgia Encyclopedia.
- "James Kilgo, 61, Who Wrote on Nature". The New York Times. December 30, 2002. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
Further reading
- Hoefer, Anthony Dyer (2022). "Wilderness South, Spotlight: James Kilgo". In Burnett, Katharine A.; Hagstette, Todd; Miller, Monica Carol (eds.). The Routledge Companion to Literature of the U.S. South. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-003-00992-4.
- Ruppersburg, Hugh; Harvey, Steve (2007). "James Kilgo (1941–2002)". The New Georgia Encyclopedia Companion to Georgia Literature. University of Georgia Press. pp. 254–257. ISBN 978-0-8203-2876-8.