Native American Authors

W.S. Penn

Nez Perce
Osage

W. S. Penn is of mixedblood Nez Perce, Osage, and Anglo descent. An associate professor of English at Michigan State University, he is a member of the National Advisory Council on Native American Writing and the Native Writers Circle.

Awards and Honors

Winner of North American Indian Prose Award, 1994
Wordcraft Circle Writer of the Year (Anthology/Collection) Award, 1998 (for As We are Now)

Online resources by or about W.S. Penn:

Dr. William S. Penn
Author: Department of English, Michigan State University
Type: authorbio
Description: Penn’s department web page includes a list of his research and teaching interests, publications, prizes, and contact information.
URL: http://www.msu.edu/unit/engdept/people/faculty/penn.htm

Native American author speaks to students
Author: David Conner
Type: authorbio
Description: A 2/18/98 article from the California Aggie about a visit by Penn to the UC Davis campus.
URL: http://www.californiaaggie.com/archive/98/02/18/penn.html

William Penn is not an imagined Native American stereotype
Author: Elisabeth Sherwin
Type: authorbio
Description: A 1998 interview with Penn from Printed Matter, a column by Elisabeth Sherwin of The Davis (Calif.) Enterprise.
URL: http://www.dcn.davis.ca.us/go/gizmo/1998/penn.html

Books by W.S. Penn:

Penn, W.S.. The absence of angels
Norman : University of Oklahoma Press, 1995.
Genre: Fiction
Audience: Adult
ISBN: 0806127147

Penn, W.S.. All My Sins Are Relatives
Lincoln, NE : University of Nebraska Press, 1995.
Genre: Essays
Audience: Adult
ISBN: 0-8032-3709 (Cloth )

Penn, W.S.. As we are now : mixblood essays on race and identity
Berkeley : University of California Press, 1997.
Genre: Essays
Audience: Adult
ISBN: 0520210727

Penn, W.S.. Killing time with strangers
Tucson : University of Arizona Press, 2000.
Genre: Fiction
Audience: Adult
ISBN: 0816520526

Penn, W.S.. The telling of the world : Native American stories and art
New York : Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 1996.
Genre: Folklore
ISBN: 1556704887

Penn, W.S.. This is the world
East Lansing : Michigan State University Press, 2000.
Genre: Short Stories
Audience: Adult
ISBN: 0870135619

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