An important author and former student of Saint Louis University presented a lecture on Tuesday, Nov. 16. Daniel Quinn, author of Ishmael, The Story of B and Providence, was presented an award from the College of Arts and Sciences in recognition of his outstanding scholarly work.

“I’m very moved to receive this award,” Quinn said as he accepted the circular gold medallion.

Quinn’s most influential work, Ishmael, was awarded the $500,000 Turner Tomorrow Fellowship prize in 1991 for it’s “creative and positive solutions to global problems. Ishmael is “the voice for ecologists and naturalists,” commented Quinn. It is comparable in theme and purpose to Rachael Carson’s masterpiece, Silent Spring. Most of his books have a cautionary tone that alerts the reader to biological or social disturbances.

In conjunction with his speech, Quinn visited some of SLU’s classrooms and held discussions. He also had a book signing at Left Bank Books on the 15th of November.

Quinn began his writing career when he was 15. It was then that he realized he had a talent for writing. He is planning on starting a new novel sometime in the near future. He has received an offer from New York. Before he starts any new piece of literature, he has a goal in mind because “you can’t get anywhere if you don’t know where you’re going ahead of time,” he said. His work has varying themes and purposes. “It just depends on the book,” he said. “I’ll probably take a vacation from the scientific/biological aspects and move to something different for my next book.”