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Jamaica Kincaid's writing career got started because of New Yorker columnist George W. S. Trow, who would take her with him while he conducted research for the magazine's Talk of the Town section. With Jamaica along, his stories always seemed to get better. He went from mentioning her in the column to quoting her in the column to exacting columns from her, which grabbed the attention of erstwhile editor William Shawn, who continued to nurture her talents. Many of Kincaid's short stories were published in the New Yorker before they became books.

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To date, Kincaid has had ten books published along with work in several magazines; in addition, she's edited short story collections, produced the film Life and Debt and taught at Harvard as a visiting professor of creative writing. While her fiction is full of fury, her garden writing imparts a much gentler spirit. This sweeter voice is perhaps the reason that her three garden works — My Favorite Plant, My Garden (Book) and Among Flowers: A Walk in the Himalayas — are some of her most critically acclaimed efforts. Tonight she'll speak on "The Writer in the Garden: The Garden as Metaphor and Paradox" as part of the Denver Botanic Gardens Bonfils-Stanton lecture series. The 7 p.m. event will be held in Mitchell Hall at the Denver Botanic Gardens, 1005 York Street. Tickets are $17 for members, $22 for non-members in advance, and $25 at the door. Visit www.botanicgardens.org or call 720-865-3580 for tickets and more information.
Tue., Feb. 12, 2008