Silas House has a long list of awards for his work as a best-selling author. He was also nominated for a Grammy for his work on the music video for “In Your Love” by Tyler Childers, and he’s the current Kentucky Poet Laureate. House will be the featured speaker at Thursday’s Rooster Booster hosted by the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce.
The program begins at 7:30 a.m. at the Owensboro Convention Center (501 West Second Street) and is sponsored by New Beginnings Sexual Assault Support Services. Register to attend here or call the Chamber office at 270-926-1860. The cost to attend is $15 for Chamber Members with reservations, $20 for Members with no reservations, and $25 for non-members.
“Silas House is a Kentucky treasure. We are delighted to welcome him to Owensboro and our Rooster Booster stage” said Candance Castlen Brake, Chamber President and CEO. “His prolific career takes him all over the world, but there is no doubt that he is a son of Kentucky. His voice captures ‘home’ in such a way that it is impossible not to find ourselves in his many novels about coming of age and living in our great Commonwealth. In a week where the world’s eyes will be turned to Churchill Downs and the Derby, it is a perfect time to gather and celebrate our heritage and our future.”
House was born and raised in southeastern Kentucky and currently lives in Lexington. Best known for his novels, he is also a music journalist, environmental activist, and columnist.
He is a former commentator for NPR’s “All Things Considered.” His writing has appeared recently in Time, The Atlantic, Ecotone, The Advocate, Garden and Gun, and Oxford American. He is a member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, the recipient of three honorary doctorates.
House has published seven novels that collectively have garnered several prestigious awards, including: the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, the Nautilus Book Award, the Storylines Prize, the Hobson Medal for Literature, the Intellectual Freedom Award from the National Council of English Teachers, the Appalachian Book of the Year, the Lee Smith Award, the James Still Award from the Fellowship of Southern Writers, and the Jesse Stuart Media Prize, and two Kentucky Novel of the Year awards.
In 2021, House was honored with the Artist Award from the Governors Award for the Arts, chosen by Gov. Andy Beshear, recognizing his contributions to the arts in his home state. He was named Kentucky Poet Laureate by Governor Beshear in 2023.
House crafted the poem “Those Who Carry Us” to honor Beshear’s second inauguration. Presented at the ceremony on December 12, 2023, the poem was immortalized in a limited edition of 300 broadsides. Each piece is numbered and autographed by House.
As a music journalist, House has worked with Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Lucinda Williams, Tyler Childers, S.G. Goodman, Lee Ann Womack, Kris Kristofferson, and many other musicians.
His work as writer, producer, and creative director for Childers’ music video for “In Your Love” earned House the Grammy nomination. It was only the tenth time in history that a country music video has been nominated for a Grammy.
