Donald Ray Pollock

Born

in The United States

January 01, 1954

Website

Genre

Short Stories, Fiction, Historical Fiction

Donald Ray Pollock was born in 1954 and grew up in southern Ohio, in a holler named Knockemstiff. He dropped out of high school at seventeen to work in a meatpacking plant, and then spent thirty-two years employed in a paper mill in Chillicothe, Ohio. He graduated from the MFA program at Ohio State University in 2009, and still lives in Chillicothe with his wife, Patsy. His first book, Knockemstiff, won the 2009 PEN/Robert Bingham Fellowship. His work has appeared in The New York Times, Third Coast, The Journal, Sou’wester, Chiron Review, River Styx, Boulevard, Folio, Granta, NYTBR, Washington Square, and The Berkeley Fiction Review. The Devil All the Time is his first novel.

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Donald Ray Pollock’s books

Average rating: 4.06 · 22,707 ratings · 3,214 reviews · 16 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Devil All the Time 4.10 avg rating — 12,802 ratings — published 2011 — 36 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Knockemstiff 3.98 avg rating — 6,604 ratings — published 2008 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Heavenly Table 4.05 avg rating — 3,228 ratings — published 2016 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hair's Fate / Knockemstiff 4.29 avg rating — 7 ratings — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dynamite Hole / Real Life 4.14 avg rating — 7 ratings — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Blessed / The Fights really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Fish Sticks / Rainy Sunday 3.67 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Assailants / Discipline / Honolulu liked it 3.00 avg rating — 2 ratings — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lard / Schott's Bridge really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Holler / I Start Over liked it 3.00 avg rating — 1 rating — published 2011 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Quotes by Donald Ray Pollock

“I'm beginning to believe that anything I do to extend my life is just going to be outweighed by the agony of living it.”
― Donald Ray Pollock, Knockemstiff

54 likes

“Some people were born just so they could be buried.”
― Donald Ray Pollock, The Devil All the Time

tags: hillbilly-noir, hoi-polloi, lower-class, pointlessness

33 likes

“A lot of people get the wrong impression, think there's something romantic or tragic about hitting bottom.”
― Donald Ray Pollock, Knockemstiff

27 likes

See all Donald Ray Pollock's quotes »

Polls

What will be our May 2017 Open Pick?

Please take into account the availability, cost, and length of books when voting for them. Remember, if you vote for a book and it wins, you are implicitly promising to read the book and participate in the discussion. The poll will be open through March 31st. (Note: You can change your vote at any time prior to the closing of the poll.) Discussion will begin May 1st.

Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera

9 votes, 45.0%

Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien

5 votes, 25.0%

The Heavenly Table by Donald Ray Pollock

5 votes, 25.0%

Suite for Barbara Loden by Nathalie Léger

1 vote, 5.0%

20 total votes

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Book Nook Cafe: What I read in July 2011	163	91	Aug 26, 2011 05:39PM
The Seasonal Read...: * Summer Challenge 2011 Completed Tasks (DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS)	2636	791	Aug 31, 2011 09:18PM
Pulp Fiction: February 2012 - The Devil All the Time	22	113	Mar 20, 2012 05:03PM
The Seasonal Read...: Spring Challenge 2012: Completed Tasks -DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS IN THIS TOPIC	2334	707	May 31, 2012 09:02PM

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