He earned a BA in religion, an MFA in nonfiction writing, and a PhD in English from the University of Iowa. He is the author of two memoirs: Man Killed by Pheasant and Other Kinships (Merloyd Lawrence Books/Da Capo Press, 2008)—which won the 2009 Orion Magazine Readers' Choice Award—and Not Just Any Land (University of Nebraska Press, 2004). Books & Audio