David Kherdian facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
David Kherdian
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| Born | December 17, 1931 Racine, Wisconsin, United States |
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| Nationality | Armenian American |
| Notable works | Monkey: A Journey to the West David of Sassoun |
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David Kherdian (born December 17, 1931) is an Armenian-American writer, poet, and editor. He is most famous for his book, The Road from Home (1979). This book tells the story of his mother's childhood. His writings have been translated into 14 different languages around the world.
Contents
Early Life and Education
David Kherdian was born on December 17, 1931, in Racine, Wisconsin. His parents, Veron Duhmejian and Melkon Kherdian, both survived the Armenian genocide.
He left high school during his junior year. After serving in the United States Army, he went to the University of Wisconsin. He earned a degree in Philosophy from there.
In 1971, he married Nonny Hogrogian. She was an Armenian illustrator. Nonny Hogrogian passed away on May 9, 2024, in Holyoke, Massachusetts. She was 92 years old.
David Kherdian's Career
Many of David Kherdian's first poems were written in just one month. This happened during his first visit to the Berkshires in Massachusetts in the summer of 1970.
Poetry and Anthologies
In the early 1970s, a program called "The Poets in Schools project" began. Kherdian took part in this project for New Hampshire. During this time, he published three collections of modern American poetry with Macmillan. These books were:
- Visions of America: By the Poets of Our Time
- Traveling America: With Today's Poets
- Settling America: The Ethnic Expression of 14 Contemporary American Poets
Famous Books and Awards
Kherdian won the 1979 Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for children's non-fiction. He was also a runner-up for the 1980 Newbery Medal. This award was for his book The Road from Home (1979). The book is about his mother, Veron Dumehjian, and her childhood during the Armenian genocide.
The Road from Home has been published in many European countries. It has also been published in other countries, including Japan. The book has been reissued several times in the United States. Its follow-up book, Finding Home (1981), describes his mother moving to the United States. She came as a mail-order bride. This book is sometimes listed as fiction.
In 2017, he published Starting from San Francisco: A Life In Writing. In this book, he wrote about his school years.
People Who Inspired David Kherdian
David Kherdian was inspired by several famous American poets. These include Walt Whitman and Henry Thoreau. They were part of a movement called Transcendentalism. He was also influenced by the American poet Emily Dickinson.
Kherdian also said that three large Kaiserlian families were his first literary influences. These families had ten children in total. His best friend, Mikey Kaiserlian, was the subject of a poetry collection. This collection, The Dividing River / The Meeting Shore, was written after Mikey's death. Mikey and his cousin, Ardie, often appeared in Kherdian's poems. Maggie, the oldest Kaiserlian child, appeared in his autobiographical story, Asking the River.
You can find permanent collections of Kherdian's work at the University of Connecticut Archive and Special Collections.
