Gardner, John [Champlin, Jr.] (1933–82), after graduation from Washington University, St. Louis, and a Ph.D. from Iowa State University, became a professor of English at several universities and, beginning in the 1960s, a prolific and popular author. His novels include
The Resurrection (1966), about a professor of philosophy who returns to his upstate New York childhood home when he is dying;
The Wreckage of Agathon (1970), a metaphysical analysis of civilization through the dialogue of a dying Greek philosopher and his disciple;
Grendel (1971), a
tour de force in telling the story of
Beowulf from the sympathetic viewpoint of the monster;
The Sunlight Dialogues (1972), a multi‐charactered philosophic and allegorical tale set in his birthplace, Batavia, N.Y.;
Nickel Mountain (1973), a pastoral set in the Catskills characterizing a man through his relationships;
October Light (1976, National Book Critics Circle Award), about the conflicts between an elderly brother and sister over political and philosophic issues;
Freddy's Book (1980), a novel within a novel, ostensibly written by a monstrous 20th‐century author, treating 16th‐century Scandinavian history and related moral dilemmas; and
Mickelsson's Ghosts (1982), about a philosophy professor caught up in emotional problems, personal and academic, and even in a violent Mormon mystery. Gardner also wrote
The King's Indian (1974) and
The Art of Living (1981), stories;
Dragon, Dragon (1975), fairy tales for children;
A Child's Bestiary (1977), in verse; and
In the Suicide Mountains (1977), a fairy tale.
Jason and Medeia (1973) is his epic poem of the classic story. His scholarly works include a biography of Chaucer (1977) and a study of his poetry (1977). His critical writings include
The Forms of Fiction (1961) and
On Moral Fiction (1978), a cantankerous consideration of modern American novels and their lack of moral content.
