Toni Morrison Dr Mariangela Palladino, Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University, was invited to participate in a recent celebration to honour Nobel Laureate and Pulitzer-winning American novelist Toni Morrison.

Dr Palladino, one of the foremost scholars of Morrison’s work, was asked to contribute an essay for a book that is being compiled in recognition of the author’s contribution to the world of literature, which was unveiled at a celebration held at the Library Congress in Washington DC, on 18 February, Morrison’s 80th birthday.

Morrison is best known for her nine published novels which won her a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, in 1988, and a Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1993. The Nobel Foundation credited Toni Morrison as an author who “in novels characterised by visionary force and poetic import, gives life to an essential aspect of American reality.”

Speaking about her essay’s inclusion in the celebration, Dr Palladino said: “I am honoured by this invitation, it is a tremendous recognition for my work and a great achievement in my career. Since I have recently left academia, this acquires a special meaning for me: it is an encouragement to pursue my passion for research and to persevere in valuing and investing in the arts”.

First published: 24 February 2011

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