Biographer William Steele explores the life of W.P. Kinsella in his book Going the Distance: The Life and Works of W.P. Kinsella. Kinsella gained popularity when his novel Shoeless Joe was made into the movie Field of Dreams, which is now celebrating its 30th anniversary. Steele was granted full access to Kinsella’s personal diaries, correspondence, and unpublished notes, plus hours of personal interviews with Kinsella, his friends, and his family. His book offers insight into the author’s personal life while balancing it with the critical analysis his fiction has inspired. Sponsored by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
William Steele grew up in Washington Court House, Ohio. He is a professor of English at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, who wrote his master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation on W.P. Kinsella’s baseball stories.
