James Jones
From Illinois Authors
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[edit] General Information
Pen Name: None
Born: November 6, 1921 in Robinson, Illinois
Died: May 9, 1977
[edit] Celebrated on the Illinois State Library, Gwendolyn Brooks Building
"When compared to the fact that he might very well be dead by this time tomorrow, whether he was corageous or not today was pointless. Life was pointless. Whether he looked at a tree or not was pointless. It just doesn't make any difference. It was pointless to the tree, it was pointless to every man in his outfit, pointless to everybody in the whole world. Who cared? It was not pointless only to him." - James Jones, The Thin Red Line
[edit] Illinois Connection
James was born and raised in Robinson, Illinois.
[edit] Biographical and Professional Information
James Jones was an American author known for his explorations of World War II and its aftermath. He won commercial success and literary fame with From Here to Eternity, an army novel set in Hawaii just before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The film version made in 1953, starring Frank Sinatra received eight academy awards. While he was born and raised in Robinson, Illinois, he spent time in Paris, France and New York. He also served in the Pacific during World War II.
Jones assisted in the formation of the Handy Writers' Colony in Marshall, Illinois, funded largely on the financial success of From Here To Eternity. Some Came Running (1958) was the only novel in which Jones drew upon his Illinois background. It was followed by other army novels, including The Pistol (1959) and The Thin Red Line (1963), which was adapted to film in 1998.
Jones is also the father of author Kaylie Jones, best known for writing A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries, a thinly veiled memoir of the Joneses living in Paris during the 1960s. Ms. Jones' novel was made into a film starring Kris Kristofferson, Barbara Hershey and Leelee Sobieski in 1998.
[edit] Published Works
- From Here to Eternity, Scribner, 1951, Reprinted, Delacorte, 1980
- Some Came Running, Scribner, 1957, Reprinted, Dell, 1979
- The Pistol, Scribner, 1959, Reprinted, Dell, 1979
- The Thin Red Line, Scribner, 1962
- Go to the Widow-Maker, Delacorte, 1967
- The Ice-Cream Headache and Other Stories, Delacorte , 1968
- The Merry Month of May, Delacorte, 1971
- A Touch of Danger, Doubleday, 1973
- World War II, Grosset, 1975
- Whistle, Delacorte, 1978
[edit] Titles for Purchase and at Your Library
 | From Here to EternityISBN: 0385333641 Release Date: 1998-10-20 |
 | Some Came RunningISBN: 0440182611 Release Date: 1979-04 |
 | The Pistol (Phoenix Fiction)ISBN: 0226391868 Release Date: 2003-05-01 |
 | The Thin Red LineISBN: 0385324081 Release Date: 1998-02-09 |
The Ice-Cream Headache and Other StoriesISBN: 0440039479 Release Date: 1968-01 |
The Merry Month of MayISBN: 0385294271 Release Date: 1985-12 |
 | A Touch Of DangerISBN: 0385047002 Release Date: 1973 |
 | World War IIISBN: 0345254287 Release Date: 1977-08-12 |
 | WhistleISBN: 0440095484 Release Date: 1978 |
[edit] Literary Awards
- From Here to Eternity won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1952 and has been named one of the 100 best novels of the 20th century by the Modern Library.
- The Pistol was a 1962 National Book Award Finalist for Fiction.
- In 1990, his name was engraved on the frieze of the Illinois State Library alongside other great Illinois literary figures.
[edit] External Links
[edit] Editing
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Categories: Authors | Last Name J | Fiction | Young Adult | Adult
