Terese Marie Mailhot

Last updated

Terese Marie Mailhot
Born (1983-06-14) 14 June 1983 (age 41)
OccupationWriter
Journalist
Memoirist
Teacher
NationalityCanadian
Education New Mexico State University
Institute of American Indian Arts
Purdue University
GenreMemoir
Years active2015-present
Spouse
Casey Gray
​
(divorced)​
Children3
Website
TereseMailhot.com

Terese Marie Mailhot (born 15 June 1983) is a First Nation Canadian writer, journalist, memoirist, and teacher. [1] [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Mailhot grew up in Seabird Island, British Columbia, on the Seabird Island First Nation reservation. Her mother, Wahzinak, was a healer, social worker, poet, and radical activist, and her father, Ken Mailhot, was an artist. [3] Her father had been incarcerated and was an alcoholic who molested Mailhot when she was young, and was often violent. [4] Mailhot's mother had a letter-writing relationship with Salvador Agron, and shared the correspondence with musician Paul Simon, who used them for his Broadway musical, The Capeman. The role of Wahzinak was portrayed by Sara Ramirez in the musical. [5] She is one of four children. [6] As a child Mailhot had tuberculosis. [7] She was in foster care periodically and eventually aged out of the system.

Mailhot's background is Nlaka'pamux, part of the indigenous First Nations people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia. [3] Her maternal grandmother, who she was close to, was raised in the brutal Canadian Indian residential school system. [8]

Mailhot got her GED and attended community college. Mailhot graduated with a bachelor's degree in English from New Mexico State University. In 2016, Mailhot received an MFA in fiction from the Institute of American Indian Arts. [6] [9]

Career

Mailhot was a columnist at Indian Country Today [10] and was Saturday Editor at The Rumpus. [11] She taught English and composition at Dona Ana Community College in Las Cruces, New Mexico. [12]

In 2017, Mailhot became a post-doctoral fellow at the English Department at Purdue University, where she works with the Native American Educational and Cultural Center. [12] Mailhot is also a professor at the Institute of American Indian Arts. [9] [13]

In 2018, Mailhot released her debut book, Heart Berries: A Memoir. [14] Heart Berries deals with sexual abuse, trauma, violence, substance abuse, going hungry, being poor, and neglect. Mailhot has said she sees her journey as being one that reflects intergenerational trauma and genocide. She uses the term "Indian sick" to describe the idea of cleansing the heart and mind in a spiritual process, which is how her community often processes these experiences. [15] The title Heart Berries comes from a story about the healer O'dimin, the Heart Berry Boy, that an Ojibwe friend who is a language teacher told her. [16] The book received overwhelmingly positive reviews in both popular and specialist sources. [17] [18] In March 2018, actress Emma Watson chose Mailhot's book as one of the monthly selections for her book club on Goodreads. [19] Heart Berries is a New York Times bestseller. [20]

Mailhot began writing her memoir while she was institutionalized in a mental institution. [8] [21] Mailhot had committed herself after having a mental breakdown related to dealing with childhood sexual abuse by her father. [14] The book consists of many essays that Mailhot wrote during her years as an MFA student. [2] Some of the book is written from Mailhot to her then-partner, Casey Gray, using an epistolary approach to reflecting on memories of the past. [15]

"Literary non-hottie" controversy

After the 2022 film Blonde , based on the life of Marilyn Monroe, Mailhot faced criticism for "failing to break away from the media’s habit of fetishizing and (re-)exploiting women," Mailhot attracted controversy for stating that Joyce Carol Oates, who wrote the novel on which the film was based, was a "literary non-hottie" who "shouldn't have written" the novel and "women who look and act like Oates have no compassion or love for women like [Monroe]." [22] The statement was widely derided for being a cruel misunderstanding of the privilege of attractiveness; according to Molly Bradley of Digg :

There is a lot to unpack in [Mailhot's critique]. First is the assertion that people who aren’t “hotties”—a fairly subjective measure—shouldn’t write about women who are. Second is the implication that women not subjectively assessed as “hotties” know nothing about being sexualized by men, or media, or whoever else. No, not everyone looks like Marilyn Monroe or goes through the experience Monroe did—but that’s exactly the point: different women have different, but equally treacherous, experiences with this kind of thing, whether they’re celebrities or sex workers or anyone else in myriad different walks of life. [22]

Personal life

Mailhot has discussed that she suffers from both post-traumatic stress disorder and bipolar II disorder. [23]

Mailhot was married as a teenager [24] and later married the writer Casey Gray. [25] She has four sons. [26]

Fellowships

Selected works and publications

Selected publications

Books

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institute of American Indian Arts</span> Public tribal college in Santa Fe, New Mexico, US

The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is a public tribal land-grant college in Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States. The college focuses on Native American art. It operates the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA), which is housed in the historic Santa Fe Federal Building, a landmark Pueblo Revival building listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Federal Building. The museum houses the National Collection of Contemporary Indian Art, with more than 7,000 items.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie Howe</span> American poet (born 1950)

Marie Howe is an American poet. Howe served as New York Poet Laureate from 2012–2016. She is currently a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets and Poet-in-Residence at The Cathedral of St John the Divine. Throughout her career, she has received fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Harvard Radcliffe Institute, and The Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown.

Allison Adelle Hedge Coke is an American poet and editor. Her debut book, Dog Road Woman, won the American Book Award and was the first finalist of the Paterson Poetry Prize and Diane DeCora Award. Since then, she has written five more books and edited eight anthologies. She is known for addressing issues of culture, prejudice, rights, the environment, peace, violence, abuse, and labor in her poetry and other creative works.

Denise Low is an American poet, honored as the second Kansas poet laureate (2007–2009). A professor at Haskell Indian Nations University, Low taught literature, creative writing and American Indian studies courses at the university.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernestine Hayes</span> Tlingit writer, poet, and former Alaska State Writer Laureate

Ernestine Saankaláxt Hayes is a Tlingit author and an Emerita professor at the University of Alaska Southeast in Juneau, Alaska. She belongs to the Wolf House of the Kaagwaaataan clan of the Eagle side of the Tlingit Nation. Hayes is a memoirist, essayist, and poet. She served as Alaska State Writer Laureate 2017–2018.

Melissa Febos is an American writer and professor. She is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir Whip Smart (2010) and the essay collections Abandon Me (2017) and Girlhood (2021).

Tiffany Midge is a Native American poet, editor, and author, who is a Hunkpapa Lakota enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux.

The Nlakaʼpamux or Nlakapamuk, also previously known as the Thompson, Thompson River Salish, Thompson Salish, Thompson River Indians or Thompson River people, and historically as the Klackarpun, Haukamaugh, Knife Indians, and Couteau Indians, are an Indigenous First Nations people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia. Their traditional territory includes parts of the North Cascades region of Washington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heid E. Erdrich</span> Native American poet and author from Minnesota

Heid E. Erdrich is a poet, editor, and writer. Erdrich is Ojibwe enrolled at Turtle Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tara Ison</span> American writer

Tara Ison is an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shan Goshorn</span> Eastern Band Cherokee artist

Shan Goshorn was an Eastern Band Cherokee artist, who lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her interdisciplinary artwork expresses human rights issues, especially those that affect Native American people today. Goshorn used different media to convey her message, including woven paper baskets, silversmithing, painting, and photography. She is best known for her baskets with Cherokee designs woven with archival paper reproductions of documents, maps, treaties, photographs and other materials that convey both the challenges and triumphs that Native Americans have experienced in the past and are still experiencing today.

Dyani White Hawk is a contemporary artist and curator of Sicangu Lakota, German, and Welsh ancestry based out of Minnesota. From 2010 to 2015, White Hawk was a curator for the Minneapolis gallery All My Relations. As an artist, White Hawk's work aesthetic is characterized by a combination of modern abstract painting and traditional Lakota art. White Hawk's pieces reflect both her Western, American upbringing and her indigenous ancestors mediums and modes for creating visual art.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jasmin Darznik</span> American author

Jasmin Darznik is an Iranian-born American writer. She is the New York Times bestselling author of three books, The Bohemians, Song of a Captive Bird, a novel inspired by the life of Forugh Farrokhzad, Iran's celebrated poet, and The Good Daughter: A Memoir of My Mother's Hidden Life, which became a New York Times bestseller. A New York Times Book Review "Editors' Choice" and a Los Angeles Times bestseller, Song of a Captive Bird was praised by The New York Times as a "complex and beautiful rendering of [a] vanished country and its scattered people; a reminder of the power and purpose of art; and an ode to female creativity under a patriarchy that repeatedly tries to snuff it out." The Bohemians was selected by Oprah Daily as one of the best historical novels of 2021. Darznik's books have been published in seventeen countries.

Wendy Ponca is an Osage artist, educator, and fashion designer noted for her Native American fashion creations. From 1982 to 1993, she taught design and Fiber Arts courses at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) of Santa Fe and later taught at the University of Las Vegas. She won first place awards for her contemporary Native American fashion from the Santa Fe Indian Market each year between 1982 and 1987. Her artwork is on display at IAIA, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Philbrook Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian.

<i>Heart Berries</i> Book by Terese Marie Mailhot

Heart Berries: A Memoir is the debut book from First Nation Canadian writer Terese Marie Mailhot. It follows Mailhot through her troubled childhood, early and tumultuous motherhood, and into her adult struggles with mental health and personal identity. Maillot's memoir covers many topics relevant to the lives of Indigenous women, including Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. It reached 14 on The New York Times Best Seller list for hardback non-fiction, and was a finalist for the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction. A number of critics have noted, both positively and negatively, the unique style of the piece, yet despite or because of this, it has received a warm reception and overall praise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Smelcer</span> American poet and novelist

John Smelcer is an American poet and novelist whose claims to Native American (Ahtna) heritage and citizenship have been the subject of multiple controversies.

Holly Wilson is a Native American artist from Oklahoma. She is an enrolled member of the Delaware Nation and is of Cherokee descent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie-Helene Bertino</span> American novelist

Marie-Helene Bertino is an American novelist and short story writer. She is the author of three novels, Beautyland (2024), Parakeet (2020) and 2AM at the Cat's Pajamas (2014), and one short story collection, Safe as Houses (2012). She has been awarded a Pushcart Prize and an O. Henry Prize for her short stories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynnette Haozous</span> Native American artist

Lynnette Haozous a Native American painter, printmaker, jeweler, writer, and actor. She is an enrolled member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe and of Chiricahua Apache, Navajo, and Taos Pueblo ancestry. Haozous works in acrylics, watercolors, spray paint, jewelry, screen-printing, writing, and acting on stage and in film. She is known for her murals and uses a blend of art and advocacy to bring attention to social conditions and injustices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deborah Jackson Taffa</span> American author

Deborah Jackson Taffa is a Native American writer who is a member of the Quechan and Laguna Pueblo tribes. She is best known for her 2024 memoir Whiskey Tender which details her life from the age of three to eighteen, growing up with a Native American father and a Catholic Latin-American mother. Whiskey Tender was a finalist for the 2024 National Book Award for Nonfiction. She earned a Masters of Fine Arts (MFA) in nonfiction writing from the University of Iowa. She is the director of the MFA creative writing program at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

References

  1. ↑ Sehgal, Parul (30 January 2018). "'Heart Berries' Shatters a Pattern of Silence". The New York Times .
  2. 1 2 Naimon, David; Mailhot, Terese Marie (13 February 2018). "Episode 104: Terese Marie Mailhot: Heart Berries" (Podcast interview). Between The Covers. Portland, OR: KBOO.
  3. 1 2 Mailhot, Terese Marie (2 February 2016). "Nlaka'pamux, Immediately". The James Franco Review.
  4. ↑ Mailhot, Terese (4 August 2017). "Terese Mailhot" (Video reading). Fall 2017 IAIA Low Rez MFA Residency.
  5. ↑ Mailhot, Terese Marie (2016). "Paul Simon Money". Transmotion. 2 (1&2). University of Kent: 131–135.
  6. 1 2 Petersen, Anne Helen (22 February 2018). "These Writers Are Launching A New Wave Of Native American Literature". BuzzFeed .
  7. ↑ Gonzales, Matthew (1 February 2018). "Q&A: Terese Marie Mailhot, Purdue's Latest Writer Poised For Fame". Indianapolis Monthly .
  8. 1 2 Garcia-Navarro, Lulu (11 February 2018). "In 'Heart Berries,' An Indigenous Woman's Chaotic Coming-Of-Age" (Audio interview includes article). Weekend Edition Saturday . NPR.
  9. 1 2 Orange, Tommy; Mailhot, Terese Marie (1 February 2018). "IAIA MFA Program—Terese Marie Mailhot and Tommy Orange" (Video interview). Institute of American Indian Arts .
  10. ↑ "Terese Marie Mailhot - Indian Country Media Network". Indian Country Today . Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  11. ↑ Siegel, Marisa (21 February 2018). "The Rumpus Book Club Chat with Terese Mailhot". The Rumpus .
  12. 1 2 3 Doty, Tim (14 August 2017). "Native American postdoctoral fellows announced for 2017" (Press release). Purdue University .
  13. ↑ "Low Residency MFA in Creative Writing". Institute of American Indian Arts . Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  14. 1 2 Mailhot, Terese Marie; Noah, Trevor (7 March 2018). "Terese Marie Mailhot - Sharing an Indigenous Voice in "Heart Berries" (Video Clip)". The Daily Show with Trevor Noah . Comedy Central. Archived from the original (Video interview) on 11 March 2018.
  15. 1 2 Castenada, Vera (1 June 2018). "The art of a revealing memoir: Terese Marie Mailhot and 'Heart Berries'". Los Angeles Times .
  16. ↑ Bangert, Dave (2 February 2018). "Q&A: Terese Marie Mailhot on tough new memoir, being a native voice at Purdue". Journal & Courier .
  17. ↑ Rooney, Kathleen (2 February 2018). "Review: 'Heart Berries' — Terese Marie Mailhot's searing memoir of Native American experience". Chicago Tribune .
  18. ↑ Mackay, James (Fall 2018). ""Review: Heart Berries"". Transmotion. 4 (2): 222–224. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  19. ↑ Watson, Emma (6 March 2018). "March/April book! Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot". Goodreads .
  20. ↑ Banger, Dave (23 March 2018). "Bangert: Terese Mailhot makes best-seller list, second Purdue author to do it in past year". Journal & Courier .
  21. ↑ Fassler, Joe (14 February 2018). "The Necessity of 'Willful Blindness' in Writing". The Atlantic .
  22. 1 2 Molly, Bradley (September 2022). "Rules For Literary Non-Hotties, And More Of This Week's 'One Main Character'". Digg. Archived from the original on 23 July 2024. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  23. ↑ Chung, Nicole (6 February 2018). "Author Terese Marie Mailhot on Creating Art From Grief". Shondaland .
  24. ↑ "Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot". Kirkus Reviews . 12 November 2017.
  25. ↑ Carter, Sue (16 March 2018). "Terese Marie Mailhot: 'Even if everything is stripped from me I still have my voice'". Toronto Star .
  26. ↑ "When It's Real, The Stakes Are Higher". To The Best of Our Knowledge. ...Mailhot, whose children are 15, 13 and 3, all boys...
  27. ↑ Rubinstein, Audrey Nadia (29 June 2015). "SWAIA Announces Annual Fellowship Winners" (Press release). The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA) .
  28. ↑ Roberts, Kathaleen (16 August 2015). "Local artist wins residency fellowship at Santa Fe Art Institute". Albuquerque Journal .
  29. ↑ "Fellowships: Terese Mailhot, Non-fiction, NM". Vermont Studio Center . 15 June 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.