Colleen Murphy

Armstrong's War Colleen Murphy

Marc Notes: A play.; Issued also in electronic format. Biographical Note: Colleen Murphy is an award-winning author who was born in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, and has since relocated to Toronto. Her plays include "The December Man" ("L'homme de decembre")--winner of the 2007 Governor General's Literary Award for Drama, the Carol Bolt Award, and the Alberta Theatre Projects Enbridge playRites Award--"Beating Heart Cadaver," "The Goodnight Bird," and "The Piper," among others. She is also a librettist ("The Enslavement and Liberation of Oksana G.") and an award-winning filmmaker whose distinct films have played in festivals around the world. Publisher Marketing: From the Governor General's Literary Award-winning author of "The December Man (L'homme de decembre)." After suffering an injury during a military tour of Afghanistan, Michael, a young soldier, is recovering in the rehabilitation wing of a hospital. The last thing he wants is to spend time with a twelve-year-old girl, but Halley, a spirited Pathfinder and self-described "reading fiend," is eager to earn her community service badge. The pair is at odds from the start, but they find a shared interest in "The Red Badge of Courage," the classic American Civil War novel, which spurs them to reveal their own stories. As their friendship grows, uncomfortable truths are exposed and questioned, redefining the meaning of courage and heroism.

Contributor Bio:  Murphy, Colleen Colleen Murphy is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.