Join us in the Merrill-Cazier library to hear Dr. Margaret Brucia give a reading of her new biography of the iconic May Swenson!

The Key to Everything: May Swenson, A Writer's Life

May Swenson (1913–1989) was one of the most important and original poets of the twentieth century. The Key to Everything is a biography of this experimental American modernist that draws directly from her unpublished diaries and her letters to friends, family, and colleagues, most notably Elizabeth Bishop. In 1952, Swenson wrote in her diary, “I want to confirm my life in a narrative—my Lesbianism, the hereditary background of my parents, grandparents, origins in the ‘old country.’” Taking up Swenson’s uncompleted autobiographical plan, Margaret Brucia tells Swenson’s story as much as possible through her own words.

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About Margaret A. Brucia, PhD

Margaret A. Brucia is a Fulbright scholar, the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome. Trained as a classicist, she has a special interest in women’s diaries and letters.