It is widely reported today that George Garrett, writer and former UVA English professor, has died at his home in Charlottesville. According to the Washington Post, Garrett died on May 26 of bladder cancer. At one time the director of the creative writing program at UVA, Garrett published dozens of books of criticism, biography, poetry and fiction in his lifetime, and served as Virginia’s Poet Laureate from 2002 to 2004. He was 78.
Born in Orlando in 1929, Garrett began his publishing career by placing numerous short stories in a Princeton University litmag when he was a student there. He went on to publish more than 30 books in a variety of genres, including political drama and the trilogy of Elizabethan historical novels for which he was best known: Death of the Fox, The Succession and Entered from the Sun.
Garrett was never a household name, but he is beloved among his colleagues and former students as a consummate editor, mentor and man of letters who had a notable sense of humor. He impacted many young writers during his years as a fixture of UVA’s writing program. Garrett is survived by his wife of 54 years, three children, two sisters and two grandchildren. According to the Daily Progress, funeral services are scheduled for 11am on June 7 at St. Paul’s Memorial Church.
C-VILLE Weekly’s John Borgmeyer interviewed Garrett for a cover story reflecting on his career in 2002.
