House Made of Dawn

The magnificent Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of a stranger in his native land

A young Native American, Abel has come home from a foreign war to find himself caught between two worlds. The first is the world of his father's, wedding him to the rhythm of the seasons, the harsh beauty of the land, and the ancient rites and traditions of his people. But the other world — modern, industrial America — pulls at Abel, demanding his loyalty, claiming his soul, goading him into a destructive, compulsive cycle of dissipation and disgust. And the young man, torn in two, descends into hell.

The novel of a proud stranger in his native land.

The magnificent Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of a stranger in his native land

A young Native American, Abel has come home from a foreign war to find himself caught between two worlds. The first is the world of his father's, wedding him to the rhythm of the seasons, the harsh beauty of the land, and the ancient rites and traditions of his people. But the other world -- modern, industrial America -- pulls at Abel, demanding his loyalty, claiming his soul, goading him into a destructive, compulsive cycle of dissipation and disgust. And the young man, torn in two, descends into hell.

Robert DiYanni is Professor of English at Pace University, Pleasantville, New York, where he teaches courses in literature, writing, and humanities. He has also taught at Queens College of the City University of New York, at New York University in the Graduate Rhetoric Program, and most recently in the Expository Writing Program at Harvard University. He received his B.A. from Rutgers University (1968) and his Ph.D. from the City University of New York (1976).

Robert DiYanni has written articles and reviews on various aspects of literature, composition, and pedagogy. His books include Literature: Reading, Fiction, Poetry, Drama and the Essay; The McGraw-Hill Book of Poetry; Women’s Voices; Like Season’d Timber: New Essays on George Herbert; and Modern American Poets: Their Voices and Visions (a text to accompany the Annenberg-funded telecourse, Voices and Visions). With Kraft Rompf, he edited The McGraw-Hill Book of Poetry, (1993) and The McGraw-Hill Book of Fiction (1995). With Pat Hoy, he edited Encounters: Readings for Inquiry and Argument (1997).