Bernard DeVoto facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bernard DeVoto
Born	Bernard Augustine DeVoto (1897-01-11)January 11, 1897 Ogden, Utah, US
Died	November 13, 1955(1955-11-13) (aged 58) New York City, US
Occupation	Writer
Period	1932–1955
Genre	History
Subject	Western United States
Notable awards	Pulitzer Prize for History (1948) National Book Award for Nonfiction (1953)
Spouse	Avis DeVoto ​ (m. 1923)​
Children	2

Bernard Augustine DeVoto (born January 11, 1897 – died November 13, 1955) was an American writer. He was a historian, someone who worked to protect nature (a conservationist), and a popular newspaper writer. He also taught, edited books, and reviewed them.

DeVoto wrote many popular history books about the American West. One of his books won a special award called the Pulitzer Prize. For many years, he wrote a well-known column called The Easy Chair in Harper's Magazine. He also wrote several good novels. A friend described him as "brilliant, provocative, ... always stimulating, sometimes infuriating, and never, never dull."

Early Life and Education

Bernard DeVoto was born on January 11, 1897, in Ogden, Utah. His father was Catholic and from Italy. His mother was the daughter of a Mormon farmer. Bernard felt like he didn't fully belong to either group.

He went to the University of Utah for one year. Then, he moved to Harvard University. He paused his studies to serve in the Army during World War I. After the war, he returned to Harvard and graduated in 1920.

His Career as a Writer

DeVoto started teaching English in 1922 at Northwestern University. Around this time, he also began writing articles and novels. He sometimes used pen names like "John August" and "Cady Hewes."

In 1927, he left Northwestern University. He and his wife, Avis DeVoto, moved to Massachusetts. He wanted to make a living just from writing. He also taught part-time at Harvard University.

DeVoto started writing a regular column for Harper's Magazine. It was called "The Easy Chair." He wrote this popular column from 1935 until he passed away.

He was also an expert on the famous writer Mark Twain. DeVoto helped organize and edit Twain's papers. This led to several books, including Letters From the Earth. From 1936 to 1938, he worked in New York City. He was the editor of the Saturday Review of Literature. After that, he went back to Massachusetts.

Between 1943 and 1953, DeVoto finished a major series of books. These books were about how the American West was discovered, settled, and used. The series included The Year of Decision: 1846 (1943) and Across the Wide Missouri (1947). The third book was The Course of Empire (1952).

Across the Wide Missouri won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 1948. The Course of Empire received the National Book Award for Nonfiction in 1953. He also edited a selection of The Journals of Lewis and Clark in 1953.

Standing Up for Freedom

In the 1950s, some people were worried about Communism in America. Committees like the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigated people. Bernard DeVoto spoke out against these investigations.

He believed that having a few Communists on a college staff was less dangerous. He thought the methods used to find them were more harmful to freedom. He also disagreed with making the Communist Party USA illegal.

DeVoto felt that some former Communists, who became very patriotic, still had extreme views. He argued that these views could still threaten people's freedom. In 1953, a US Representative even called DeVoto "pro-Communist" because of his views.

Family Life

DeVoto married Avis DeVoto (1904–1989). She was a book reviewer and editor. She was also a great cook. Avis became good friends with the famous chef Julia Child.

Julia Child had written a fan letter to Bernard DeVoto. She liked an article he wrote in Harper's Magazine. In it, he said he didn't like stainless steel knives. Avis's reply to Julia started a long friendship between the two women. Avis helped Julia a lot with her famous cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

The DeVotos had two sons. Their son Mark (born 1940) is a music expert and composer. He used to be a professor at Tufts University. Their older son, Gordon, was a writer and passed away in 2009.

Bernard DeVoto died on November 13, 1955.

Books and Works

• The Crooked Mile (1924) novel
• The Chariot of Fire (1926) novel
• devoto, Bernard. The House of Sun-Goes-Down. New York: Macmillan. OCLC 613154969. (1928) novel
• Mark Twain's America (1932)
• We Accept With Pleasure (1934) novel
• Genius is not Enough (1936) criticism
• Forays and Rebuttals (1936) essays
• Troubled Star, by John August (1939) novel
• Rain Before Seven, by John August (1940) novel
• Mark Twain in Eruption (1940), editor
• Minority Report (1940) essays
• Mark Twain at Work (1942), editor
• Advance Agent, by John August (1942) novel
• devoto, Bernard (2016). The Year of Decision, 1846. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-1787200357. OCLC 490177177. (1942)
• The Literary Fallacy (1944), criticism
• The Portable Mark Twain (1946, editor)
• Across the Wide Missouri, With an Account of the Discovery of the Miller Collection (1947) [Pulitzer Prize winner] ISBN: 0395924979
• Mountain Time (1946) novel
• The Hour: A Cocktail Manifesto (1951)
• The World of Fiction (1950)
• The Course of Empire (1952) [National Book Award]
• The Journals of Lewis and Clark (1953, editor)
• The Easy Chair (1955) essays
• Women and Children First by Cady Hewes (1956) essays
• The Letters of Bernard DeVoto (1975, edited by Wallace Stegner)
• The Western Paradox (2001, edited by Douglas Brinkley and Patricia Nelson Limerick)
• DeVoto's West: History, Conservation, and the Public Good (2002, edited by Edward K. Muller)
• The Selected Letters of Bernard DeVoto and Katharine Sterne (2012, edited by Mark DeVoto)

See also

• Avis DeVoto