M. K. Joseph

Michael Kennedy Joseph (9 July 1914 – 4 October 1981) was a British-born New Zealand poet and novelist in several genres. He studied at Sacred Heart College, Auckland, and at Merton College, Oxford, from 1936 to 1939.[1] During the Second World War he served with the Royal Artillery.[1] His works range from I'll Soldier No More, A Pound of Saffron and A Soldier's Tale to the science fiction works The Hole in the Zero and The Time of Achamoth to a historical novel, Kaspar's Journey, based on the medieval Children's Crusade. The Hole in the Zero includes the first known use of the word "hoverboard".[2]

Joseph was also a Professor of English at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.[3] Notable students include Australian poet Michael Sharkey.[4]

In 1969, he edited the 1831 text of Frankenstein for Oxford University Press; in 1980 the text was reissued in the World's Classics series.[5]

  1. ^ a b Levens, R.G.C., ed. (1964). Merton College Register 1900–1964. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. p. 276.
  2. ^ Shea, Ammon. "Hoverboard". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  3. ^ Joseph, M.K. (ed.), Mary Shelley. p. i, authors' biographies. Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. Oxford World's Classics, 1998.
  4. ^ Sharkey, Michael (1976). Byron's Plays: An interpretative study (Doctoral thesis). ResearchSpace@Auckland, University of Auckland. hdl:2292/2117.
  5. ^ Joseph, M.K. (ed.), Mary Shelley. p. iv, copyright notices. Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. Oxford World's Classics, 1998.