PRO CONNECT
Bill Schubart has lived with his family in Vermont since 1947. He writes about Vermont in fiction, humor and opinion pieces.
He has written five books:
The Lamoille Stories (ISBN 978-1-935052-10-4) White River Press – 2008
Fat People (ISBN 978-0-615-39751-1) Magic Hill Press LLC – 2010
Panhead (ISBN 978-0-9834852-6-1) Magic Hill Press LLC – 2012
I am Baybie (ISBN: 978-0-9834852-9-2) Magic Hill Press LLC – 2013
Photographic Memory (ISBN: 978-0-9834852-8-5) Magic Hill Press - 2014
In 1972, he co-founded Philo Records http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philo_Records_(folk) an independent record label that produces international artists in the folk and classical field and which is now part of the Rounder Group. He also founded the Pleiades Music Group, a music publishing company.
At 26, Schubart was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Vermont Arts Council, and then served again at age 41. At 30, he joined the Board of the Vermont Symphony Orchestra. In 1984, he became Chairman of the Vermont Folklife Center. At the request of then-Governor Madeleine Kunin, Schubart chaired the Vermont Statehood Bicentennial Commission, planning the celebration for Vermont’s 200th birthday in 1991.
Schubart has chaired the Arts Council’s Media Panel, Literature Panel and Visual Arts Panels and has served as a resource panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition, he has advised many non-profit and educational organizations on a variety of cultural and technical projects including the formation of Vermont Public Radio, on whose board he recently served as Chair. Additionally, he has taught courses at the University of Vermont in music, technology and business. He currently is Chair of the VT College of Fine Arts www.VCFA.edu
Schubart was born in New York City in 1945. His father, who was serving as an officer in the Navy, died in the Philippines in World War II before his son was born. His widow moved with her newborn son to Vermont in 1947, where he was educated in Morrisville Public Schools, Phillips Exeter Academy, Kenyon College and the University of Vermont.
Schubart’s great uncle was the renowned photographer and champion of impressionist art, Alfred Stieglitz. Schubart is fluent in French language and culture which he taught before entering communications as an entrepreneur.
He writes and speaks extensively on the media and other civic issues and has written as well for Current. He has served on panels and spoken at numerous industry and media events including Book Expo, The Direct Marketing Association and The Entertainment Marketing Conference. He also writes and publishes opinion and fiction at www.Schubart.com.
“Schubart, a gifted writer, uses beautiful language from the very beginning to set the scene”
– Kirkus Reviews
Schubart’s latest (Panhead, 2012, etc.) peruses the photo-album–esque memories and experiences of a Vermont farm boy.
The protagonist of this dreamlike coming-of-age story, farm-boy David, is simple by disposition. David doesn’t so much come into the world as the world—in all its quotidian minutia—comes to him. David is naïve and calm, qualities discouraged by his grandmother, who lives in New York. She mothers him when David’s own mother recedes into postpartum depression. This novel, from start to finish, is David’s life, told objectively with great insight and generous detail. In fact, the narrative provides such a wealth of intricate information, readers may hunger for an actual plot. And while this lack of focus could be a purposeful attempt to stylize memory’s clouded nature—something that could work in a shorter piece—the experiment falls short when there’s an absence of a concrete storyline, conflict or character-driven momentum. Schubart, a gifted writer, uses beautiful language from the very beginning to set the scene: “They gaze at him, caught in silver halide, albumen and salt print memory, these relatives with their sad, dark eyes and sepia surroundings, Fragonard backdrops…and the reticence of hands.” But as the story moves forward, the vibrant, if somewhat purple, language grows dull. When dealing with memories and faded images—as this novel does—it’s best to have terra firma for readers, and unfortunately, this ambitious narrative offers no such placement.
Fans of detailed passages and sprawling life experience as seen from a composed and realistic perspective will enjoy; those who appreciate a linear plotline may not.
Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-9834852-8-5
Page count: 335pp
Publisher: Magic Hill Press
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2013
Day job
writer
Favorite author
Marcel Proust
Favorite book
A La recherche du temps perdu
Favorite word
serein
Hometown
Hinesburg, Vermont
Passion in life
empathy
Unexpected skill or talent
building rock walls and stairs, logging
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