Dorothy Marie Donnelly facts for kids
Dorothy Marie Donnelly (born Boillotat; September 7, 1903 – May 2, 1994) was an American poet and essayist. She wrote six books of poetry and prose, along with many articles. Her work was published in both Europe and the United States.
About Dorothy Donnelly
Dorothy Marie Boillotat was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1903. She grew up in Grosse Pointe Park and later lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan. After two years at Detroit Teachers College (now Wayne State University), she started teaching at age seventeen. She even published two articles in the "Detroit Journal of Education" when she was still a teenager.
She then went to the University of Michigan. There, she earned both a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and a Master of Arts (M.A.) degree. She was chosen for Phi Beta Kappa, which is a special honor society for smart students. She also won a major Hopwood Award for writing, which was a big deal, in the first year it was offered.
In 1931, Dorothy married Walter Donnelly. He was also a smart graduate from the University of Michigan. Walter worked as an editor for the university. Dorothy and Walter lived at 612 Lawrence Street in Ann Arbor for the rest of their lives. Dorothy chose to stay home and write while raising their three sons: Stephen, Jerome, and Denis. She was offered teaching jobs at the University of Michigan but preferred to focus on her writing at home.
Their home became a popular spot for many interesting people to visit. It was like an "accidental salon," where poets, professors, and even future politicians would gather. For example, a student group discussing Thomas Aquinas met there. This group included Philip Hart, who later became a U.S. Senator. The Hart Senate Office Building in Washington D.C. is named after him.
Many other important thinkers visited the Donnelly home. The young poet Robert Hayden once found shelter there during a thunderstorm. Famous Welsh poet Dylan Thomas also spent an evening at their house after giving a reading in 1950. British philosophers Peter Geach and Elizabeth Anscombe became friends with the Donnellys during their time as visiting professors. John Heath-Stubbs, an English poet and critic, became a lifelong friend and always stayed at their house when he visited Ann Arbor.
Dorothy Donnelly's Writing Career
Before she got married, Dorothy published her work in a famous literary magazine called transition. This magazine, published in Paris, also featured well-known writers like James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway. The editor, Eugene Jolas, even told her she was "the only writer in America going in the right direction."
Her first book, The Bone and the Star, was highly praised. It explored ideas about early humans from a Christian viewpoint. Another book, The Golden Well: An Anatomy of Symbols, was published in both America and England. A reviewer for the London Times Literary Supplement called it "remarkable" and "unusually rich."
After these books, Dorothy focused more on poetry. Her poems appeared in important magazines like Poetry, The New Yorker, and The Hudson Review. She won several awards for her poetry, including the Poetry's Union League Civic and Arts Prize in 1954 and Poetry magazine's Harriet Monroe Memorial Prize in 1957.
Her first poetry book, Trio in a Mirror, came out in 1960. Later, she published Kudzu and Other Poems (1978) and The Palace of Being (1990). Her poems were also included in many collections, such as The New Yorker Book of Poems and Penguin Poems of Science. She also wrote many articles and reviews for different publications.
In 1976, Dorothy Donnelly received a very special honor: the gold medal for the Christian Culture Award at Assumption University in Canada. This award recognized her as "an integral humanist, an outstanding exponent of Christian ideals." She joined a group of famous past winners, including Marshall McLuhan and Dorothy Day.
Reviews of her work appeared in major newspapers and literary journals like the Times Literary Supplement, The New York Times, and The Chicago Tribune.
