The renowned feminist author of “All About Love” has died at the age of 69.
Gloria Jean Watkins — known best by her legendary pen name, bell hooks (she wrote under the lowercase nom de plume) — died in her hometown of Berea, Kentucky, where she was a distinguished professor in residence at Berea College, according to the Lexington Herald Leader.
“The author, professor, critic and feminist made her transition early this [a.m.] from her home, surrounded by family and friends,” her family posted on Twitter Wednesday.
Born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, in 1952, hooks — whose pen name came from her maternal great-grandmother Bell Blair Hooks — wrote more than 40 books that made her “an international favorite loved by many,” read a statement from her family.
Author bell hooks wrote dozens of books throughout her life. Getty Images“The family is honored that Gloria received numerous awards, honors, and international fame for her works as poet, author, feminist, professor, cultural critic, and social activist.”
Hooks’ most notable work, 1999’s “All About Love: New Visions,” covered the topic of love in the modern world through the lens of her own anecdotes about ex-lovers in addition to psychological and philosophical theories on the emotional subject.
When hooks was inducted into the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame in 2018, she spoke on the purpose of her writing and how it changed the lives of readers worldwide.
She remained an active educator in Kentucky late into her life at Berea College. Getty Images“I want my work to be about healing,” hooks told the Lexington Herald Leader. “I am a fortunate writer because every day of my life practically I get a letter, a phone call from someone who tells me how my work has transformed their life.”
A year before that, she began dedicating her papers to Berea College “ensuring that future generations of Bereans will know her work and the impact she had on the intersections of race, gender, place, class and sexuality,” according to a statement from the school, which vowed to keep hooks’ legacy alive in the years to come.
“The bell hooks Institute at Berea College will continue to be a valuable and informative beacon to her life’s work, continuing to remind humans that life is all about love. In her words, ‘To love well is the task in all meaningful relationships, not just romantic bonds.’ ”
Many of her devoted readers shared excerpts from her work upon hearing of her passing, including a notable passage from “Black Looks: Race and Representation.”
“All attempts to repress Black peoples’ right to gaze has produced in us an overwhelming longing to look, a rebellious desire, an oppositional gaze. By courageously looking, we defiantly declared, ‘Not only will I stare, I want my look to change reality.’ ”
