Colson Whitehead established himself as one of the most important authors in American literature. Winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, he has made history by making racism the subject of his books that connect with the present day of the United States.
He is also the author of the novels The Intuitionist, John Henry Days, Apex Hides the Hurt and Sag Harbor, and also of a collection of essays, The Colossus of New York. Colson has published articles in The New York Times, Granta, Harper’s, and The New Yorker. Recipient of a Whiting Writers’ Award, winner of a MacArthur Fellowship and a research fellowship at the Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, Colson lives in New York City.
Colson Whitehead Wiki: Age, Parents, Family
Arch Colson Chipp Whitehead was born on 6th November 1969 in New York to his parents Arch and Mary Anne Whitehead. His parents owned a recruiting firm named Arch S. Whithead Associates, Inc. He grew up with his three siblings, a brother Clarke Whitehead and his two sisters. One of his sisters has become a nurse and she is into music. As a child, Colson was keen on reading science fiction, fantasy, and horror movies.
His family moved to Manhattan and he studied in Trinity School. Colson then attended Harvard University and graduated with BA in 1991. When at the Harvard University, Whitehead met the poet Kevin Young, who became his great friend. He started working at the Village Voice, his job was to write reviews about books, music, and television.
Whitehead decided to start writing a novel that ended in 1999 called The Intuitionist. It was well-received, making it a finalist for the PEN / Hemingway Award and winning the New Voices award from The Quality Paperback Book Club.
Colson Whitehead Career Biography
Motivated by his first success as a debutante, he decided to write a second book: John Henry Days (2001). He published The Colossus of New York (2003), it is an essay about this city. The next novel, Apex Hides the Hurt (2006), was a finalist for the PEN / Oakland Award. And, three years later Sag Harbor was released as a finalist for the PEN / Faulkner and the Hurston / Wright Legacy Award.
At that time his most popular work was and continues to be John Henry Days. In 2011 he published the bestseller Zone One; This is an apocalyptic science fiction novel that narrates the moment when an epidemic attacks the world, two types of people remain: the healthy and the infected; the living and the undead.
This African American writer has a very successful and productive career, in 2014 he published: The Noble Hustle: Poker, Beef Jerky & Death. Colson Whitehead has also published articles for major publications such as the New York Times, The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Harper’s, and Granta.
The most recent is The Underground Railroad, in Spanish: The underground railroad (2017), is an excellent work with historical overtones that narrates the escape of a slave from the plantation and that With this book, he has not only achieved the aforementioned awards but also the approval of many African Americans who have claimed their racial identity.
He has also been involved in teaching as a professor at institutions such as Columbia University and Princeton University, he has been awarded the Guggenheim and MacArthur Scholarships. He then published the Nickel Boys, in it, he recreated a terrible and forgotten episode of abuse and torture in a Florida reformatory.
Colson Whitehead Awards
In 2001, after publishing his second book John Henry Days, Colson became a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Prize for Fiction, and the Pulitzer Prize. As a consequence, his books began to gain popularity and so did his name. Subsequently, he won the Young Lions Fiction Award and the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award.
His book Underground Railroad has obtained, among others, the prestigious National Book Award of 2016, the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction Works, and the 2017 Indies Choice Book Award for Best Adult Fiction Book of the Year. With the novel The Nickel Boys he received his second Pulitzer.
Colson Whitehead Wife, Married, Children
Talking of Colson Whitehead’s romantic life, he is a happily married man. Colson is currently married to his beautiful wife Julie Barer. And together from their decade-long marriage, Colson and his wife have a son together named Beckett. He is 8 years old now.
Colson’s life partner, Julie, shares the same passion for writing like him. Julie is a literary agent and a partner at the Book Group which she founded in 2015. She has presented works that are featured in The Atlantic Monthly, Harper’s, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Best American Short Stories, Tin House, and others.
Together the couple bought a beautiful Manson in Sag Harbor named The Hamptons on Long Island. Know Colson’s wife more by going through her personal biography here.
Julie Barer Wiki, Bio, Net Worth, Age, Birthday, Colson Whitehead Wife, Children, Family, Baby
Colson Whitehead Ex-Wife, First Wife, Divorce
Natasha Stovall is Colson’s first wife who he married in 2000. Whitehead met his first wife at the time when he was working at the Village Voice as Television Critic. Natasha was a writer and a photographer at the time.
But eventually, Colson and his first wife grew apart from their marriage, after Colson was offered to write Poker series for his next venture.
When he committed to writing the book, Colson and Natasha separated and divorced legally. At that point it was very difficult for Colson, he was going through depression inside but had to put the poker face on the outside. He said he never wanted to be in that place ever again.
From his first marriage, Colson and his former wife have a daughter named Madeline Whitehead who has already turned 18.
Colson Whitehead Net Worth, Salary, Earnings 2021
Mr. Whitehead has had a very successful career so far. All the accolades along with the monetary return which Colson received from his career have been grand.
Through the fortune earned, Colson is able to provide for himself and his family a content life. In 2017, Colson and his current wife Julie bought 4000 square feet European designed home which has 4 bedrooms and 3.5 baths. Today’s price of the property is $2,250,000.
Further, Whitehead likes to spend time with his family and children, loves to cook for them. As for his net worth, Colson Whitehead boasts a net worth of around $3 Million. Whereas his wife is also approaching a million figure soon with a net worth of $800,000 for 2021.
Colson Whitehead Social Media
Colson is active on Twitter where he tweets about his upcoming books and he has also posted the video of his and his wife’s interview on his Twitter handle which has to date 229.7K Followers.
As for his Instagram account, Colson has created one but he hasn’t used his account much. He has no posts, no tags but surprisingly he has 1492 followers.
Quick Wiki Facts and Information on Colson Whitehead
| Full Name/Real Name | Arch Colson Chipp Whitehead |
| Nickname | Colson |
| Date of Birth/Birthday | 6th November 1969 |
| Age | 51 |
| Birth Sign | Scorpio |
| Born Country | USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Hometown | New York, United States |
| Ethnicity | African American |
| Parents | Arch and Mary Anne Whitehead |
| Siblings | brother Clarke Whitehead and his two sisters |
| Profession | Writer |
| Education(college/university) | Harvard University |
| Marital status | Divorced once, Married Twice |
| Wife | Julie Barer |
| Ex-wife | Natasha Stovall |
| Children | Madeline Whitehead and son Beckett |
| Social Media | Instagram and Twitter |
| Net Worth | $3 million |
| Hair color | Grey |
| Eye color | Black |
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