Peter Matthiessen
AUTHOR

Peter Matthiessen

Literature & Fiction | Science & Engineering | Biographies & Memoirs
Tap the gear icon above to manage new release emails.
Peter Matthiessen (May 22, 1927 - April 5, 2014) was an American novelist, naturalist, wilderness writer and CIA agent. A co-founder of the literary magazine The Paris Review, he was a 2008 National Book Award winner. He was also a prominent environmental activist. His nonfiction featured nature and travel, notably The Snow Leopard (1978) and American Indian issues and history, such as a detailed and controversial study of the Leonard Peltier case, In the Spirit of Crazy Horse (1983). His fiction was adapted for film: the early story "Travelin' Man" was made into The Young One (1960) by Luis Buñuel and the novel At Play in the Fields of the Lord (1965) into the 1991 film of the same name. In 2008, at age 81, Matthiessen received the National Book Award for Fiction for Shadow Country, a one-volume, 890-page revision of his three novels set in frontier Florida that had been published in the 1990s. According to critic Michael Dirda, "No one writes more lyrically [than Matthiessen] about animals or describes more movingly the spiritual experience of mountaintops, savannas, and the sea." Matthiessen was treated for acute leukemia for more than a year. His death came as he awaited publication of his final novel, In Paradise on April 8. Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Melissa Eagan, WNYC New York Public Radio (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wnyc/2565449584/) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
Read more Read less
You're getting a free audiobook


You're getting a free audiobook.

$14.95 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Try for $0.00

Featured Article: 60+ Nature Quotes to Inspire and Motivate You


From the Andes Mountains to Monument Valley, from Niagara Falls to Kilauea, nature is truly awe-inspiring. Beyond natural marvels, ecosystems on Earth are so vast and varied. Nature’s beauty and wonder are literally everywhere, waiting to delight and uplift us. Countless storytellers over the years have examined the endless beauty of the great outdoors. We’ve assembled some of our favorite quotes about nature to motivate and inspire you.

Featured Article 60+ Nature Quotes to Inspire and Motivate You

Best Sellers

Product List
  • At Play in the Fields of the Lord Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • Lost Man's River Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $30.09 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $30.09 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • The Tree Where Man Was Born Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $15.56 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $15.56 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • Tides Audiobook By Jonathan White, Peter Matthiessen - Foreward cover art

    Regular price: $17.90 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $17.90 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • The Snow Leopard Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen, Pico Iyer - introduction cover art

    Regular price: $15.75 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $15.75 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • Killing Mr. Watson Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • In the Spirit of Crazy Horse Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $27.26 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $27.26 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • At Play in the Fields of the Lord Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $19.46 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $19.46 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • Bone by Bone Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $25.79 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • Shadow Country Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $31.16 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $31.16 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • The Cloud Forest Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $15.56 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $15.56 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • In Paradise Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $15.75 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $15.75 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • Tigers in the Snow Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $13.75 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $13.75 or 1 credit

    Included in Plus membership
    Try for $0.00
  • No Boundaries Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $8.36 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $8.36 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00
  • Sneleoparden Audiobook By Peter Matthiessen cover art

    Regular price: $17.11 or 1 credit

    Sale price: $17.11 or 1 credit

    Try for $0.00

Are you an author?

Help us improve our Author Pages by updating your bibliography and submitting a new or current image and biography.
Visit Amazon Author Central