George Saunders

Five distinguished alumni presented with prestigious Arents Award
By Joe Infantino
October 4, 2013 - 11:48pm
Five distinct professionals with five very different careers were each awarded with an Arents Award on Friday.

A designer, an actor, a writer, a metal worker and a philanthropist: five distinct people with five very different careers, each connected by their alma mater and now the highest award Syracuse University can offer its alumni; the Arents Award.

“These awards celebrate alumni whose lives and accomplishments exemplify the essence of Syracuse,” Chancellor Nancy Cantor said in her introductory speech. “Each of them bear brilliant testament to this ongoing impulse to create and to care at the same time.”

George Saunders wows audience with wit, candidness
By Eesha Patkar
April 30, 2013 - 11:42am
The short-story author and SU professor appeared to talk and sign books at a local bookstore

A clear consensus emerged among the fans of prolific author George Saunders after his April 26 book signing and lecture at the Eerie Blvd. Barnes & Noble: he is an incredibly funny man. When he read out-loud a selection from "Victory Lap" –- the first short stories from the critically acclaimed collection Tenth of December (2013) –- his exaggerated mimicry and comical voice inflections amused audience members. The cherry-topper of the evening came when Saunders fielded questions from the crowd, sharing hilarious anecdotes on writing and life.