Todd F. Davis
Encyclopedia
Todd F. Davis is a prize-winning American poet and critic.
) is Professor of English and Environmental Studies at Penn State University’s Altoona College
. He is the author of four books of poetry, as well as the author or editor of several volumes of literary criticism.
The winner of the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, awarded by the Society for the Study of Midwestern Literature, Davis has published poems in numerous national and international journals and magazines, including Poetry Daily, Verse Daily, The North American Review, The Iowa Review, The Gettysburg Review, Indiana Review, The Christian Science Monitor, Orion, Shenandoah, River Styx, Sou’wester, 5 AM, Quarterly West, Green Mountains Review, Poetry East, West Branch, Epoch, The Louisville Review, and Image.
Davis is the author of four books of poetry—Ripe (2002), Some Heaven (2007), The Least of These (2010), and Household of Water, Moon, and Snow: The Thoreau Poems (2010)—as well as co-editor, with Erin Murphy
, of the anthology, Making Poems (2010). Garrison Keillor
has featured Davis’s poems on The Writer’s Almanac, and Ted Kooser
has selected his poems to appear in the nationally syndicated American Life in Poetry column.
As literary critic, Davis is the author of several books related to ethical criticism and postmodern humanism, including Kurt Vonnegut’s Crusade, or How a Postmodern Harlequin Preached a New Kind of Humanism (2006) and, with Kenneth Womack, Postmodern Humanism in Contemporary Literature and Culture: Reconciling the Void (2006).
In 1987, Davis earned a B.A. from Grace College
in Winona Lake, Indiana, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in English from Northern Illinois University
in 1991 and 1995, respectively.
Davis lives near the village of Tipton, Pennsylvania
, with his wife Shelly and their sons.
Life and Work
Todd F. Davis (born March 29, 1965, in Elkhart, IndianaElkhart, Indiana
Elkhart is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The city is located east of South Bend, northwest of Fort Wayne, east of Chicago, and north of Indianapolis...
) is Professor of English and Environmental Studies at Penn State University’s Altoona College
Penn State Altoona
Penn State Altoona is a commonwealth campus of The Pennsylvania State University. It is located in Logan Township, Pennsylvania, just outside of Altoona, Pennsylvania, although some of its buildings are located in the heart of Altoona's downtown.-History:...
. He is the author of four books of poetry, as well as the author or editor of several volumes of literary criticism.
The winner of the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Prize, awarded by the Society for the Study of Midwestern Literature, Davis has published poems in numerous national and international journals and magazines, including Poetry Daily, Verse Daily, The North American Review, The Iowa Review, The Gettysburg Review, Indiana Review, The Christian Science Monitor, Orion, Shenandoah, River Styx, Sou’wester, 5 AM, Quarterly West, Green Mountains Review, Poetry East, West Branch, Epoch, The Louisville Review, and Image.
Davis is the author of four books of poetry—Ripe (2002), Some Heaven (2007), The Least of These (2010), and Household of Water, Moon, and Snow: The Thoreau Poems (2010)—as well as co-editor, with Erin Murphy
Erin Murphy (poet)
-Publications - Books:* Dislocation and Other Theories * Science of Desire , a finalist for the Paterson Poetry Prize.* Too Much of this World , winner of the Anthony Piccione Poetry Prize....
, of the anthology, Making Poems (2010). Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio personality. He is known as host of the Minnesota Public Radio show A Prairie Home Companion Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (born August 7, 1942) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio...
has featured Davis’s poems on The Writer’s Almanac, and Ted Kooser
Ted Kooser
Ted Kooser is an American poet. He served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004 to 2006.-Early Life:...
has selected his poems to appear in the nationally syndicated American Life in Poetry column.
As literary critic, Davis is the author of several books related to ethical criticism and postmodern humanism, including Kurt Vonnegut’s Crusade, or How a Postmodern Harlequin Preached a New Kind of Humanism (2006) and, with Kenneth Womack, Postmodern Humanism in Contemporary Literature and Culture: Reconciling the Void (2006).
In 1987, Davis earned a B.A. from Grace College
Grace College
Grace College is an evangelical Christian college located in Winona Lake, Indiana. The college is associated with Grace Theological Seminary and the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches.-Accreditation:...
in Winona Lake, Indiana, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in English from Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
in 1991 and 1995, respectively.
Davis lives near the village of Tipton, Pennsylvania
Tipton, Pennsylvania
Tipton is a census-designated place in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,225 at the 2000 census. It is well known for its amusement park, DelGrosso's, formerly known as Bland's Park...
, with his wife Shelly and their sons.
Poetry
- The Least of These: Poems, (Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press, 2010).
- Household of Water, Moon, and Snow: The Thoreau Poems (Lewisburg, PA: Seven Kitchens Press, 2010).
- Making Poems: Forty Poems with Commentary by the Poets (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2010; co-edited with Erin Murphy).
- Some Heaven: Poems (Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press, 2007).
- Ripe: Poems (Huron, OH: Bottom Dog Press, 2002).
Scholarship
- Postmodern Humanism in Contemporary Literature and Culture: Reconciling the Void (New York: Palgrave, 2006; co-authored with Kenneth Womack).
- Kurt Vonnegut’s Crusade, or How a Postmodern Harlequin Preached a New Kind of Humanism (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2006).
- Reading the Beatles: Cultural Studies, Literary Criticism, and the Fab Four (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2006; co-edited with Kenneth Womack).
- The Critical Response to John Irving (Westport, CT: Praeger, 2004; co-edited with Kenneth Womack).
- Formalist Criticism and Reader-Response Theory (New York: Palgrave, 2002; co-authored with Kenneth Womack).
- Mapping the Ethical Turn: A Reader in Ethics, Culture, and Literary Theory (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2001; co-edited with Kenneth Womack).