“There are all kinds of things God wants me to do that I'm very obstreperous about.”

American poet, essayist, and memoirist

Mary Karr is an American poet, essayist, and memoirist from East Texas. Born in 1955, she is best known for her 1995 bestselling memoir, The Liars' Club, and for her work as a professor of English literature at Syracuse University. Karr's writing is often associated with memoir and poetry, and she has built a reputation around sharp, candid personal prose. She teaches at Syracuse as the Jesse Truesdell Peck Professor of English Literature, while her books have made her a prominent voice in contemporary American letters.