Donn Kushner

Donn Jean Kushner was born on March 29, 1927, in Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States.[1]

In 1948, Kushner moved to Canada and became a Canadian Citizen.[1] He studied at Harvard and McGill Universities, and earned a Bachelor of Science from Harvard in 1948, a Master of Science from McGill in 1950, and a PhD also from McGill in 1952.[1][2]

Before his work in universities, Kushner was a Research Scientist for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, from 1954 to 1961, and was also a research scientist for the National Research Council in Ottawa from 1961 to 1965.[2]

From 1965 to 1967, Kushner was an Associate professor of Biology at the University of Ottawa and was Professor of Biology from 1967 to 1988.[2] He then left Ottawa and became a Professor of Biology at the University of Toronto from 1988 until his retirement in 1992 and was also a Fellow of Victoria College from 1988 to 1992.[1][2][3] In 1988, Kushner joined the Departments of Microbiology and Botany, and the Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Toronto.[2] In 1992, he became professor emeritus in the Department of Botany.[2]

During his time at these universities, Kushner authored several scientific articles and was the editor of Microbial Life in Extreme Environments, published in 1978.[1] From 1977 to 1983, he co-edited the Canadian Journal of Microbiology.[1] In 1986, Kushner received the Ottawa Biological and Biochemical Society Award and, in 1992, he received the Canadian Society of Microbiologists Award.[1] Kushner was also President of the Canadian Society for Microbiology and edited Archives of Microbiology.[2]

Two bacteria are named after Kushner: Halanaerobium kushneri and Salinivibrio kushnerii.[1]

In 1981, Kushner published a collection of short fiction for adults called The Witness and Other Stories.[1] Also in 1981, his book The Violin-Maker's Gift, after being published on March 30, 1981, won the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year Award.[1][4] The book has been translated into Dutch, German, French and Polish.[1] Kushner's other children's books have also won awards.[2]

Kushner published several more children's books, including Uncle Jacob's Ghost Story (1986), A Book Dragon (1987), which won the National Chapter of Canada IODE Violet Downey Book Award in 1988, The House of the Good Spirits (1990), The Dinosaur Duster (1992), A Thief Among Statues (1993), The Night Voyagers (1995), and Peter's Pixie (2003), the latter of which was published posthumously.[1][5]

Kushner's blend of fiction and fantasy in his books gave him a distinctive voice and won him critical acclaim as a modern fabulist, with parallels being drawn between him and French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.[1]

Kushner died in Toronto after struggling against two illnesses, on September 15, 2001.[1][2] His funeral took place from September 21 to 22 at Humphrey Funeral Home in Toronto.[2]