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| Valerie Boyd | |
Valerie Boyd, author of Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston (2003), the first biography of Hurston in 25 years, died February 12. She was 58. Boyd was also the editor of the upcoming book Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals of Alice Walker 1965-2000, which will be published April 12 by Simon & Schuster, and was working on an anthology titled Bigger than Bravery: Black Resilience and Reclamation in a Time of Pandemic.
A journalist and cultural critic, Boyd was the former arts editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and her work was published in numerous anthologies, magazines and newspapers. In 1990, she founded EightRock, a journal of black arts and culture; and in 1992 she co-founded HealthQuest, the first nationally distributed magazine focusing on African-American health. Boyd was an associate professor and the Charlayne Hunter-Gault Distinguished Writer in Residence at the Grady College of Journalism at the University of Georgia.
"Valerie Boyd was one of the best people ever to live, which she did as a free being," said Alice Walker. "Even though illness was stalking her the past several years, she accompanied me in gathering, transcribing, and editing my journals Gathering Blossoms Under Fire, and stood with me until the end, though she will be with us in spirit only for publication on April 12, two months after her passing. This was a major feat, a huge act of love and solidarity, of sisterhood, of soul generosity and shared joy, for which she will be remembered; as she will be remembered with immense gratitude for her extraordinary biography Wrapped in Rainbows of our revered and irrepressible Medicine Ancestor, Zora Neale Hurston."
Dana Canedy, senior v-p & publisher of Simon & Schuster, commented, "We are deeply saddened by the news of the death of Valerie Boyd. Boyd was a tremendous talent who touched so many with her generous spirit and deep commitment to storytelling. We regret that she didn't live to see Gathering Blossoms Under Fire published and in the hands of readers, but we will honor her work, and her legacy will not be forgotten."
"Valerie Boyd's towering prose, gentle spirit and moral compass will be greatly missed by all of us," said Charles N. Davis, dean of Grady College. "She possessed a rare combination of gift and grit, a colleague who, once she set to a task, never let go. Her work with our MFA program set the course for what has become a family of writers--a family that grieves today, but also celebrates what she helped to build."
Charlayne Hunter-Gault observed that not only was Boyd a distinguished writer, "Valerie was, herself, wrapped in rainbows, as the light she shed on all who came in contact with her made them better people.... What made Valerie's light shine so bright without being blinding was her always calm demeanor and her unhurried, thoughtful responses to sometimes difficult questions.... It is my fervent hope that one (or many) of those who benefitted from Valerie's teaching will one day follow in both Valerie and Zora's footsteps, and as Valerie quoted Zora... 'be brave enough to undertake' a detailed account of her journey.' "