A Celebration of Andy Levy

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Last Thursday, the Efroymson Center for Creative Writing was filled with supporters and fans of Butler Professor Andy Levy. Levy’s most recent book, Huck Finn’s America: Mark Twain and the Era That Shaped His Masterpiece, has earned national recognition and rave reviews, but Thursday’s event was more than a celebration of the successful book.

In his introduction of Levy, colleague Dan Barden explained the evening was “a party for our friend. A celebration of Andy Levy.” Levy was lauded for his genius as a writer, success as a teacher, and value as a friend. Preceding a short but captivating reading from the book, Levy delivered a beautiful thank you to the Butler community. He began by saying, “Butler is all over this book.” The idea for the book began in his days as a Teacher-in-Resident twenty years ago. Levy said the heavily researched book was written all over the campus and frequently discussed in class and with students, many of whom are thanked or footnoted in the book. He further stated, “I will never again write a book without the involvement of my students.”

Before he left the podium, Levy asked for a round of applause for his young son, Aedan, for no other reason than for being a cool kid. The rest of the evening emulated a true celebration with food, laughter, drinks, and conversation about Levy being not just a talented writer and dedicated teacher, but also an overall cool man.