Winter's Bone Author Daniel Woodrell Dies at 72

"It was only after I joined that I began to hear contrary notions. This was the most combustible part of my life. All these ideas were new to me. I'd never heard of pacifism. I didn't know about the idea of defying your government. I knew you could do that if you wanted to be a criminal, but I didn't know you could do it on moral grounds. I learned."

"Woodrell wrote Winter's Bonein 2006, about a teen girl in the Missouri Ozarks looking for her missing father. The 2010 film adaptation launched the career of Jennifer Lawrence. Woodrell was born in Springfield, Missouri in 1953. He joined the Marines after dropping out of high school."

Daniel Woodrell died at age 72 at his home in West Plains, Missouri after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer; a prior colon cancer had gone into remission. He coined the term "country noir" to describe desperate circumstances in rural America. He wrote Winter's Bone in 2006 about a teen in the Missouri Ozarks searching for her missing father; the 2010 film adaptation received multiple Academy Award nominations and helped launch Jennifer Lawrence's career. Born in Springfield, Missouri in 1953, he joined the Marines after dropping out of high school and later earned degrees from the University of Kansas and the Iowa Writers' Workshop. His novels include Under the Bright Lights, Woe to Live On, Winter's Bone, and Tomato Red.

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