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Karen Joy Fowler

カレン・ジョイ・ファウラー

Karen Joy Fowler

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1950-02-07 （Bloomington, Indiana, United States）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
Writer, Novelist, Short story writer
Active Years
1986-

Education

University of California, Berkeley
Political Science / Political Science
Degree: BA
Period: 1968–1972
Year of Graduation: 1972
Country: United States
University of California, Davis
Japanese and Chinese studies (graduate work)
Period: 1972–1974
Country: United States
Did graduate study in Japanese and Chinese studies but discontinued research due to child-rearing

Awards

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer
1987
Category: 新人賞
Organization: John W. Campbell Award administrators / Worldcon
Result: Winner
World Fantasy Award (Collection)
1998
Work: Black Glass
Category: 短編集
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: Winner
Nebula Award — Best Short Story
2004
Work: What I Didn't See
Category: 短編
Organization: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA)
Result: Winner
Nebula Award — Best Short Story
2008
Work: Always
Category: 短編
Organization: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA)
Result: Winner
Shirley Jackson Award — Short Fiction
2009
Work: The Pelican Bar
Category: 短編
Organization: Shirley Jackson Awards
Result: Winner
World Fantasy Award — Short Fiction
2010
Work: The Pelican Bar
Category: 短編
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: Winner
World Fantasy Award (Collection)
2011
Work: What I Didn't See and Other Stories
Category: 短編集
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: Winner
PEN/Faulkner Award
2014
Work: We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
Category: 長編小説
Organization: PEN America
Result: Winner
World Fantasy Award — Life Achievement
2020
Category: 生涯業績
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves

2013 Literary fiction 352 pages

A family-focused novel that explores memory, identity, and the human-animal boundary through the story of siblings affected by a significant event in their childhood.

familymemoryidentityhuman-animal relationships
Translations
  • We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (Japanese translation by Naoko Yakura, 2017)

The Jane Austen Book Club

2004 Literary fiction 336 pages

A novel about a book club devoted to Jane Austen that examines the lives and relationships of its members, exploring love, friendship, and personal growth.

friendshipromancepersonal growthliterature and life
Adaptations
  • [Film] The Jane Austen Book Club / Robin Swicord (2007)
Translations
  • The Jane Austen Book Club (Japanese translation by Naoko Yakura, 2006)

Sarah Canary

1991 Novel (historical/strange fiction) 224 pages

Set in 19th-century America, the novel centers on a mysterious encounter and explores prejudice and the strangeness of human experience.

encounterothernesshistory

Artificial Things

1986 Short story collection (science fiction) 192 pages

Early short story collection containing science-fiction-tinged pieces that established her as a short fiction writer.

technologyhuman relationships

Bibliography

  • Artificial Things (1986) — short stories
  • Peripheral Vision (1990) — short stories
  • Letters from Home (1991) — short stories (with Pat Murphy and Pat Cadigan)
  • Sarah Canary (1991) — novel
  • The War of the Roses (1991) — novel
  • The Sweetheart Season (1996) — novel
  • Black Glass (1997) — short stories
  • Sister Noon (2001) — novel
  • The Jane Austen Book Club (2004) — novel
  • Wit's End (2008) — novel
  • What I Didn't See and Other Stories (2010) — short stories
  • We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (2013) — novel

Adaptations

  • The Jane Austen Book Club (film adaptation, 2007)

Translations of Works

  • The Jane Austen Book Club (Japanese translation by Naoko Yakura, 2006)
  • We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (Japanese translation by Naoko Yakura, 2017)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Blends realism with wit and humorGenre-crossing — moves between science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction
Recurring Motifs
family and sibling relationshipsmemory and identityboundaries between humans and animals

Legacy

Karen Joy Fowler is known for a wide range of work from speculative short fiction to literary novels, and has received major awards including the Nebula, World Fantasy Awards, and the PEN/Faulkner. The Jane Austen Book Club was adapted into a film and brought her a broader popular readership.

Trivia

  • Began career as a short story writer in science fiction before gaining success in mainstream literary fiction.
  • The Jane Austen Book Club was adapted into a film in 2007.
  • Has won Nebula Awards, multiple World Fantasy Awards, and the PEN/Faulkner Award.