Florence King

I have a lot of things to thank the University of Maine, Orono for.

Accepting me as a transfer student with all my college credits intact, introducing me to the amazing Professor Edward “Sandy” Ives, making me whisper to myself “ohhhh…this is where Victor Pascow died” when I went to the campus health service center after a tumble off my bike, seeing Uncle Stevie himself in the flesh when cutting class, and finding Florence King’s Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady in the stacks when I should have studying for Geology 101 (books are always going to be more interesting to me than an old rock).

I first encountered Florence King at my local library, reading Reflections in a Jaundiced Eye and When Sisterhood was in Flower, and wondering if I would ever find any more of her books.

Remember this was in the dark days before the rise of the Internet and Amazon.

But there in the Raymond H. Fogler Library was Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady. Of course, I snapped it up, bringing it to the cafeteria so I could keep reading, socializing with my fellow UMO classmates be damned. Her writing was crisp, to the point, funny and smart.

And the hunt for more Florence King was on.

Thumbnail Biography

Born Florence Virginia King on January 5, 1936, to Herbert Frederick King and his American wife Louise Ruding King in Washington, D.C.

An avid reader, Florence King attended American University and the University of Mississippi studying history. She worked as a teacher, a file clerk, a reporter, and stints at Cosmopolitan and The National Review magazines.

Florence King was best known for her sharp essays about life and culture and 1985’s Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady, a semi-autobiographical look at how her family raised and influenced her to uphold the ideals of a lady.

Florence King died January 6, 2016, the day after her eighth birthday.

Books

Southern Ladies and Gentlemen (1975)
WASP, Where is Thy Sting? (1977)
He: An Irreverent Look at the American Male (1978)
Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady (1985)
Reflections in a Jaundiced Eye (1989)
Lump It or Leave It (1990)
With Charity Toward None: A Fond Look at Misanthropy (1992)
The Florence King Reader  (1995)
STET, Damnit!  (2002)
Deja Reviews: Florence King All Over Again  (2006)

Withering Slights: The Bent Pin Collection 2007-2012 (2014)

Online

 Florence King – Wikipedia

Florence King | LGBT Info | Fandom

Florence King, Author and Columnist (mswritersandmusicians.com)

Florence King Obituary | National Review

Florence King, Writer Who Wielded an Acerbic Wit, Dies at 80 – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Florence King, acerbic conservative writer, dies at 80 – The Washington Post