David james duncan biography channel

American novelist and essayist

David James Duncan (born 1952)^[1] is an American novelist and essayist, best known for his two bestselling novels, The River Why (1983) and The Brothers K (1992).

Both novels received the Pacific Northwest Booksellers award; The Brothers K was a New York Times Notable Book in 1992 and won a Best Books Award from the American Library Association.^[1] His third novel, Sun House, was released by Little, Brown and Company on August 8, 2023.^[2]

Film adaptation

In 2008, The River Why was adapted into a "low-budget film" of the same name^[3] starring William Hurt and Amber Heard.^[4] On April 30, 2008, the film rights to The River Why became the subject of a lawsuit by Duncan alleging copyright infringement, among other issues.^[5][6] The lawsuit has been settled and Duncan has said, "I engaged in a three-year legal battle against the producers of the film