Nebraska Author Jonis Agee

A list of works by Nebraska author
Jonis Agee

Jonis Agee was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and grew up in both Nebraska and Missouri, graduating from Central High School in Omaha. She earned her BA from The University of Iowa, and her MA and PHD from the State University of New York – Binghamton University. After living briefly in Los Angeles, she then taught at The College of St. Catherine (now St. Catherine University) in St. Paul, MN, and at the University of Michigan, before returning to her home state to teach at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Agee is currently the Adele Hall Professor of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she specializes in Fiction, Creative Fiction and Modern and Contemporary American Literature.

Agee and her husband, Brent Spencer, lives on an acreage north of Omaha, Nebraska, overlooking the Missouri River, where they have recently founded a literary press, Brighthorse Books, publishing fiction and poetry books. She also owns land outside Valentine, in the Sandhills region of of western Nebraska — and her experiences with that rugged landscape have influenced several of her stories and novels.

In addition to the awards received for specific books (listed under the individual books in her bibliography below), Agee has also received the following honors:

• Minnesota State Arts Board Award in Fiction, 1977
• National Endowment for the Arts grant in fiction, 1978
• Bush Grant for Faculty Development in Creative Writing, 1983
• Loft-McKnight Award in Fiction, 1989
• Loft-McKnight Award of Distinction, 1991
• Distinguished Artist Award in Fiction, Nebraska Arts Council, 2009
• Backwaters Press Publication Award, Nebraska Arts Council, 2009
• Mark Twain Award for Distinguished Contribution to Midwestern Literature, The Society for the Study of Midwestern Literature, 2009
• George Garrett Award, Association of Writers and Writing Programs, 2010
• Outstanding Research and Creativity Award (ORCA), University of Nebraska, 2010

Additional information about Jonis Agree can be found at the following Web sites:

• The Official Jonis Agee web site
• Jonis Agee entry at NebraskaAuthors.org
• Jonis Agee’s UN-L Staff Directory page
• Wikipedia entry for Jonis Agee

Jonis Agee’s novels, short story collections, and non-fiction titles:

The Bones of Paradise
(2016)

>> High Plains Book Award for Fiction
>> Nebraska Book Award
>> Selected as Omaha Reads – city-wide reading title

The River Wife
(2007)

>> John Gardner Fiction Award

Acts of Love on Indigo Road
(2003)

Short Story Collection

>> ForeWord Magazine Gold Medal for Fiction
>> Nebraska Book Award

Taking the Wall
(1999)

Short Story Collection

>> ForeWord Magazine Editor’s Choice Award

The Weight of Dreams
(1999)

>> Nebraska Book Award

South of Resurrection
(2004)

Stiller’s Pond: New Fiction From the Upper Midwest
(1996)

Anthology, edited by Agee.

A .38 Special and a Broken Heart: Short-Short Stories
(1995)

Short Story Collection

Strange Angels
(1993)

>> New York Times – Notable Book of the Year

Sweet Eyes
(1991)

>> New York Times – Notable Book of the Year

Bend This Heart
(1989)

Short Story Collection

>> New York Times – Notable Book of the Year

Pretend We’ve Never Met
(1989)

Short Story Collection

Border Crossings
(1984)

Two Poems
(1983)

Poetry Collection

Mercury
(1981)

Poetry – single stand-alone poem

Houses
(1976)

Poetry Collection

Last updated: May 2023 sdc