Lyall H. Powers is a professor of English at the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

, where he has taught since 1958. He was granted emeritus

Emeritus

Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...

 status by the University's Regents during their October, 1992, meeting.

Powers has written widely on modern American authors, and, with Leon Edel

Leon Edel

Joseph Leon Edel was a North American literary critic and biographer. He was the elder brother of North American philosopher Abraham Edel....

, edited the complete notebooks of Henry James

Henry James

Henry James, OM was an American-born writer, regarded as one of the key figures of 19th-century literary realism. He was the son of Henry James, Sr., a clergyman, and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James....

. One of his most widely circulated books is Alien Heart, a biography of Canadian author Margaret Laurence

Margaret Laurence

Jean Margaret Laurence, CC was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, one of the major figures in Canadian literature.- Early years :...

. A lifelong friend of Laurence, having met her when they were students together in the 1940s, Powers combines personal knowledge of the author with a study of her writings.