Janisse Ray
Encyclopedia
Janisse Ray is an American
writer
, naturalist
, and environmental activist.
She attended North Georgia College, 1980–82; Florida State University
, B.A.
, 1984; and the University of Montana, M.F.A., 1997.
Her first book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, recounts her experiences growing up in a junkyard, the daughter of a poor, white, fundamentalist Christian family. The book interweaves family history and memoir
with natural history
writing—specifically, descriptions of the ecology
of the vanishing longleaf pine
forests that once blanketed much of the South
. The book won the American Book Award
, the Southern Book Critics Circle Award, and the Southern Environmental Law Center Award for Outstanding Writing on the Southern environment. It was also chosen for the "All Georgia Reading the Same Book" project by the Georgia Center for the Book.
Ray's second book, Wild Card Quilt, recounts her experiences of moving back home to Georgia
with her son after attending graduate school in Montana
.
Her third book, Pinhook, tells the story of Pinhook Swamp, the land that connects the Okefenokee Swamp
in Georgia and Osceola National Forest
in Florida
Her fourth book, Drifting into Darien, published in 2011, describes her experiences on and knowledge about the mighty Altamaha River, which runs from middle Georgia to the Atlantic Ocean at Darien.
Ray published a book of poetry, A House of Branches, in 2010, and has been a contributor to Audubon, Orion, and other magazines, as well as a commentator for NPR
's Living on Earth
. An environmental activist, she has campaigned on behalf of the Altamaha River
and the Moody Swamp.
She teaches in the Chatham University Low-Residency
Master of Fine Arts Program
in Creative Writing
.
She was born on February 2 in Baxley, Georgia
the daughter of Franklin D. and Lee Ada Branch Ray. She has a son, Silas Ausable.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, naturalist
Naturalist
Naturalist may refer to:* Practitioner of natural history* Conservationist* Advocate of naturalism * Naturalist , autobiography-See also:* The American Naturalist, periodical* Naturalism...
, and environmental activist.
She attended North Georgia College, 1980–82; Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...
, B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
, 1984; and the University of Montana, M.F.A., 1997.
Her first book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, recounts her experiences growing up in a junkyard, the daughter of a poor, white, fundamentalist Christian family. The book interweaves family history and memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
with natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
writing—specifically, descriptions of the ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
of the vanishing longleaf pine
Longleaf Pine
Pinus palustris, commonly known as the Longleaf Pine, is a pine native to the southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from eastern Texas to southeast Virginia extending into northern and central Florida....
forests that once blanketed much of the South
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
. The book won the American Book Award
American Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
, the Southern Book Critics Circle Award, and the Southern Environmental Law Center Award for Outstanding Writing on the Southern environment. It was also chosen for the "All Georgia Reading the Same Book" project by the Georgia Center for the Book.
Ray's second book, Wild Card Quilt, recounts her experiences of moving back home to Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
with her son after attending graduate school in Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
.
Her third book, Pinhook, tells the story of Pinhook Swamp, the land that connects the Okefenokee Swamp
Okefenokee Swamp
The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000 acre , peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia–Florida border in the United States. A majority of the swamp is in Georgia and protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. The Okefenokee Swamp is considered to be...
in Georgia and Osceola National Forest
Osceola National Forest
Osceola National Forest is an American National Forest located in Florida.Osceola National Forest was created by President Herbert Hoover's proclamation, on July 10, 1931...
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
Her fourth book, Drifting into Darien, published in 2011, describes her experiences on and knowledge about the mighty Altamaha River, which runs from middle Georgia to the Atlantic Ocean at Darien.
Ray published a book of poetry, A House of Branches, in 2010, and has been a contributor to Audubon, Orion, and other magazines, as well as a commentator for NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
's Living on Earth
Living on Earth
Living on Earth is a weekly, hour-long and award-winning environmental news program distributed by Public Radio International.Hosted by Steve Curwood, the program features interviews and commentary on a broad range of ecological issues, exploring how humans interact with their landscape. The show...
. An environmental activist, she has campaigned on behalf of the Altamaha River
Altamaha River
The Altamaha River is a major river of the American state of Georgia. It flows generally eastward for 137 miles from its origin at the confluence of the Oconee River and Ocmulgee River towards the Atlantic Ocean, where it empties into the ocean near Brunswick, Georgia. There are no dams...
and the Moody Swamp.
She teaches in the Chatham University Low-Residency
Low-residency program
A low-residency program is a form of education, normally at the university level, which involves some amount of distance education and brief one to two week on-campus residencies...
Master of Fine Arts Program
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
in Creative Writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
.
She was born on February 2 in Baxley, Georgia
Baxley, Georgia
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,150 people, 1,567 households, and 1,048 families residing in the city. The population density was 580.7 people per square mile . There were 1,866 housing units at an average density of 261.1 per square mile...
the daughter of Franklin D. and Lee Ada Branch Ray. She has a son, Silas Ausable.
Books
- Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, memoir (Minneapolis: Milkweed Editions, 2000).
- Wild Card Quilt: Taking a Chance on Home, memoir (Minneapolis: Milkweed Editions, 2003).
- Between Two Rivers: Stories from the Red Hills to the Gulf, (Co-editor, with Susan Cerulean and Laura Newtown) nonfiction (Tallahassee: Heart of the Earth, 2004).
- Pinhook: Finding Wholeness in a Fragmented Land,, nonfiction (White River Junction: Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2005).
- A House of Branches,, poetry (Nicholasville: Wind Pub., 2010).
- Drifting into Darien: a Personal and Natural History of the Altamaha River, nonfiction (Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 2011).
External links
- Milkweed Editions webpage for Ecology of a Cracker Childhood
- Georgia Encyclopedia entry for Janisse Ray
- Whole Terrain link to Ray's articles published in Whole TerrainWhole TerrainWhole Terrain: Journal of Reflective Environmental Practice is an environmentally-themed literary journal that's published approximately once a year by Antioch University New England . Each volume explores emerging ecological and social issues from the perspectives of practitioners working in the...
- Janisse Ray and Nancy Marshall, "James Holland, Riverkeeper: Environmental Protection Along the Altamaha", Southern Spaces, 11 August 2011.