March 23, 2023

SVSU brings Michigan memoirist to region

Saginaw Valley State University will host author and memoirist Anne-Marie Oomen for a public lecture on Thursday, April 6. “An Evening with Anne-Marie Oomen” will be begin at 7 p.m. at the Alice & Jack Wirt Public Library, 500 Center Ave., Bay City. The event is free and open to the public.  

Ooman recently received the Association of Writers and Writing Program’s Sue William Silverman Nonfiction Award and a Michigan Notable Book Award for her 2022 memoir, “As Long As I Know You: The Mom Book,” in which she chronicled her difficult, yet ultimately rewarding, relationship with her mother.  

Oomen's readings spring from a range of lively sources including intergenerational challenges (Mother-daughter conflict?), travel adventures (You lost your passport!), and how she discovered poetry (involving a 1969 Camaro). Working in multiple genres, Oomen explores the nature of relationships, the natural world, and personal transformation. 

In addition to “The Mom Book,” Oomen has authored other socially relevant memoirs, including “Pulling Down the Barn: Memories of a Rural Childhood,” and “House of Fields: Memories of a Rural Education,” as well as “Love, Sex and 4-H,” which won a Next Generation Indie Award for Memoir. Among her other works, Oomen co-authored, with Linda Nemec Foster, “Lake Michigan Mermaid,” which was named a Michigan Notable Book of 2019. Oomen teaches at the Solstice MFA at Lasell University in Newton, Massachusetts, at Interlochen’s College of Creative Arts in northern Michigan, and at conferences throughout the country.  

Oomen’s appearance is supported by the Dow Visiting Scholars and Artists series at SVSU, which was established through an endowment from the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation to enrich our region’s cultural and intellectual opportunities.