E. J. Levy

Ellen J. Levy is an American writer and academic who is an associate professor of English at Colorado State University. Her collection of short stories, Love, In Theory, was published in 2012, and her first novel, The Cape Doctor, in 2021 to positive reviews.

E.J. Levy
Born
Ellen Levy

St. Louis Park, Minnesota, U.S.
OccupationWriter
AwardsLambda Literary Award, Colorado Book Award, GLCA New Writers Award
Academic background
EducationYale University (BA)
Ohio State University (MFA)
Academic work
InstitutionsColorado College, American University, University of Missouri-Columbia, Colorado State University, Kenyon College
Websitehttp://ejlevy.com/

Early life and education

Levy was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota.[1] She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University and a Master of Fine Arts from Ohio State University.[2]

Career

As of 2021, she is an associate professor in the English department at Colorado State University, concentrating on fiction and non-fiction creative writing.[3] She received tenure in 2014.[4]

Her work has appeared in The Paris Review,[5] The New York Times,[6][7] and Salon.[8] She was the editor of the anthology, Tasting Life Twice: Literary Lesbian Fiction by New American Writers, which won a Lambda Literary Award.[9]

Levy's debut story collection, Love, In Theory, won the 2012 Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction, a 2012 Foreword Book of the Year Award (Bronze), and the 2014 Great Lakes Colleges Association's (GLCA) New Writers Award for Fiction.[10][11] A Publishers Weekly review of the book called Levy "a master of his [sic] form".[12]

The Cape Doctor

In February 2019, publisher Little, Brown and Company acquired Levy's historical novel The Cape Doctor. It is a portrayal of military surgeon James Barry (1789-1865), who was born Margaret Bulkley but lived as a man as an adult. When Levy announced the upcoming book's sale on social media, she referred to Barry as "she" and a "heroine", which was criticized by transgender people and some authors who say male pronouns are more in line with Barry's life history and self-image.[13][14][15] Levy told The Times that Barry is most often referred to as "I" in her novel and sometimes as "she" and "he".[13] In response to the controversy, biographer Jeremy Dronfield said, "I have no argument with seeing James Barry as a transgender icon, or Margaret as a feminist role model. I do take issue with those who insist on recognising one and erasing the other."[15]

The book was released in June, 2021.[16] The New York Times reviewer said that the book, following the female protagonist Perry, explores her experiences "sometimes painfully, sometimes wittily, always persuasively".[17] Kirkus Reviews wrote "Artfully written but more likely to attract attention for its subject than its author's craft."[18] Booklist said "in sum, an unforgettable work of art that deserves raves."[19] The Denver Post wrote "The story is a good one, but it is the exquisite writing and the portrayal of women in the first half of the 19th century that make The Cape Doctor such an intriguing book."[20]

The book won a 2022 Colorado Book Award for historical fiction.[21]

Personal life

Levy identifies as a lesbian.[13][8] In a 2013 essay, she described herself as marrying a man but continuing to be a lesbian.[8]

Publications

Books
  • Tasting Life Twice: Literary Lesbian Fiction by New American Writers. Avon. 1995. ISBN 978-0-3807-8123-2.
  • Love, In Theory. University of Georgia Press. 2012. ISBN 978-0-8203-4349-5.
  • Amazons: A Love Story. University of Missouri Press. 2012. ISBN 978-0-8262-1975-6.
  • The Cape Doctor. Little, Brown and Company. 2021. ISBN 9780316536585.

References
  1. Strayed, Cheryl (10 March 2013). "E J Levy". Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  2. "EJ Levy, Author at English". English. Retrieved 2021-01-27.
  3. "Associate Professor EJ Levy". Retrieved March 27, 2019.
  4. Salahub, Jill (December 12, 2014). "News of Note Week of December 8th". Colorado State University. Retrieved March 28, 2019.
  5. Levy, E. J. (13 November 2018). "Theory of the Leisure Class". Vol. Summer 2003, no. 166 – via www.theparisreview.org. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  6. Levy, E. J. (7 November 2013). "After a Parent's Death, a Rush of Change". The New York Times.
  7. Levy, E. J. (13 February 2009). "Opinion - The Maggots in Your Mushrooms". The New York Times.
  8. Levy, EJ (13 July 2013). "I'm a lesbian marrying a man". Salon. Retrieved 27 March 2019. So let me be clear, since I can't be the only one: I am a lesbian marrying a man.
  9. "8th Annual Lambda Literary Awards". Lambda Literary. July 14, 1996.
  10. "Winners of the GLCA New Writers Award" (PDF). Great Lake Colleges Association. January 17, 2019.
  11. "Full List of 2012 Foreword Indies Winners". Foreword Reviews.
  12. "Fiction Book Review: Love, in Theory by E.J. Levy". Publishers Weekly. October 8, 2012.
  13. Barter, Pavel (9 March 2019). "Novelist defends her version of pioneering trans doctor's life story". The Times. Retrieved 26 March 2019. Trans writers have accused Levy of disrespecting Barry by referring to the surgeon as 'she' on social media... Levy told The Times that she referred to Barry in the novel as 'he', 'she', and most often as 'I'.
  14. Baker-Whitelaw, Gavia (February 15, 2019). "Writers want this book canceled for misgendering its protagonist". The Daily Dot. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  15. Flood, Allison (February 18, 2019). "New novel about Dr James Barry sparks row over Victorian's gender identity". The Guardian. Retrieved February 23, 2019. When Levy, winner of the Flannery O'Connor award, announced the news of her novel by describing Barry as 'a heroine for our time, for all time', other authors began to question Levy's reference to Barry as 'she', including novelist Celeste Ng, who told Levy: 'I'm now seeing you use she/her pronouns for Barry even as many are telling you Barry himself used and wanted he/him pronouns.'
  16. The Cape Doctor. Little, Brown and Company. 4 February 2020. ISBN 9780316536554. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  17. Becker, Alida (13 July 2021). "Fiction Based on Real People and Places, for Better and for Worse". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  18. "The Cape Doctor". Kirkus Reviews. 5 May 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  19. Cape Doctor, by By E. J. Levy. | Booklist Online.
  20. "Regional book review: "The Cape Doctor" historical fiction at its best". The Denver Post. 2021-06-10. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  21. Simpson, Kevin (2022-06-26). "2022 Colorado Book Award winners announced". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
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