Philip Roth is one of the most critically-acclaimed authors of all time, and it’s no surprise he’s a Bucknellian at heart. While at Bucknell, Roth was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, pursuing a B.A. in English. After graduating in 1954, he went on to attain his M.A. in English Liturature at the University of Chicago. Roth eventually became a Creative Writing professor at Princeton University and the University of Iowa.
Roth has received over 35 literary awards and nominations, including the National Book Award for his first novel Goodbye, Columbus and Five Short Stories, The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for American Pastoral, and most recently, the Man Booker International Prize. Arguably his most well-known novel, Portnoy’s Complaint, made the New York Times’ best seller list in 1969, launching his extremely successful career.
His novels have also been made into the movies Portnoy’s Complaint, Elegy, Goodbye, Columbus, and The Human Stain.
The humble Roth continues to write boundary-pushing novels that still garner attention across the world. To get a better idea of Roth’s pure ingenuity, check out his interview with CBS’s Rita Braver:
Sources:
http://rothsociety.org/?page_id=19
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http://withfriendship.com/images/f/29952/Philip-Roth-image.jpg
http://www.bucknell.edu/x70452.xml
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Vz7oUhqTQk