Jeanne Larsen

Jeanne Larsen fell in love with Chinese poetry when she was in high school. After earning her M.A. in creative writing, she spent two years teaching at Tunghai University in Taiwan, and studying Mandarin. That not only locked in her love for Tang era poets and the world they lived in, it convinced her that, right Mom, she'd better go get a Ph.D. A few years of Comparative Literature later (Iowa City, USA, & Nagasaki, Japan, mostly), Jeanne started teaching at Hollins, between the Blue Ridge and the Allegheny highlands, in Virginia's Roanoke valley.

She eventually went back to Taiwan for more language work. Summer seminars for college and university teachers helped her learn more about Chinese history and culture. Most recently, an intensive session at the Center for Hellenic Studies furthered her interest in Homer's ODYSSEY.