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 David
Anthony Durham, who joined the creative writing faculty at California
State University, Fresno this semester, has won Best of 2007 acclaim
from Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly and Fantasy Magazine for his
fourth novel, “Acacia,” published by Doubleday in June.
“Acacia” is the first in a projected series about a mythic dynasty that
ruthlessly built an empire based on slave trading that comes under
attack from people the dynasty victimized.
In its review, Kirkus said: “The novel's strong echoes of Homer and
Virgil, Tolkien, Norse mythology’s ‘Twilight of the Gods’ and America's
compromised history as a republic built on slavery fuse into an
enthralling, literate and increasingly suspenseful narrative.”
Publishers Weekly said: “Durham has created a richly detailed alternate
reality leavened with a dollop of magic and populated by complicated
personalities grappling with issues of freedom and oppression.”
In Kirkus Reviews’ “The Best of 2007 – Fiction,” Durham’s work is on the
same Top 10 list as books by National Book Awardee Andrea Barrett (“The
Air We Breathe”), National Book Award nominees Amy Bloom (“Away”) and
Mischa Berlinski (“Fieldwork”) and with Orange Prize winner Valerie
Martin (“Trespass”).
“It's actually really gratifying to have this stellar year of
recognition from Kirkus,” said Durham. “I think it's fair to say they
can be pretty hard to please.”
“Acacia” also was one of Publishers Weekly’s “Best Books of the Year,”
and Paula Guran put it on her “Recommended Fantasy Reads from 2007,”
writing: “A book I haven’t reviewed because I didn’t feel I could do it
justice. A truly epic fantasy … with a rich world and nuanced
characters. Superbly written.”
“Acacia” has been optioned for development as a movie, and is being
translated into French, German, Italian, Polish, Russian and Portuguese.
Durham’s debut novel, “Gabriel’s Story,” received the 2002
Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Debut Fiction, an Alex Award from the
American Library Association and several other honors. The Spanish
edition of “Pride of Carthage,” was a bestseller in Chile and Mexico.
Before joining the Fresno State faculty’s Master of Fine Arts program,
Durham was the MacLean Distinguished Writer in Residence at Colorado
College in Colorado Springs.
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