Reid inducted into Nevada Writers Hall of Fame

Writer, musician and mathematician Robert Leonard Reid of Carson City was inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame during a reception held on Tuesday at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Reid is the author of five books, four works for the theater, and more than 100 essays, articles, and short stories. Louise Erdrich characterized Reid’s essays as “wonderfully fluent, even visionary.” Ron Hansen called them “stirring, witty, gorgeously written.”

Reid’s latest book, “Because It Is So Beautiful: Unraveling the Mystique of the American West,” was a finalist for the 2018 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay. Reid has received two Artist Fellowships in Literary Arts from the Nevada Arts Council.

A prolific songwriter, he has written and staged three satirical musical revues and the 24-song Bristlecone Mass. For more than a decade he has served as piano accompanist for songstress June Joplin in the Great American Songbook duo, Me and Bobby McGee.

Reid attended Harvard, where he earned a degree in mathematics. He lives in Carson City with his wife, Carol Dimmick Reid. They have a son, Jacob.

Reid’s website is www.robertleonardreid.com.