Benjamin Hoff (born on November 11, 1946[1]) is an American author. He is best known as the author ofThe Tao of Pooh (1982) andThe Te of Piglet (1992). In 2006, he denounced the publishing industry and announced his resignation from book-writing. His book,The Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow, won theAmerican Book Award in 1988.
Hoff grew up in the Portland, Oregon neighborhood ofSylvan, where he acquired a fondness of the natural world that has been highly influential in his writing. He attended elementary and middle school in Sylvan and attended bothBenson Polytechnic High School andLincoln High School in Portland. Hoff attended college at theUniversity of Oregon inEugene and the Portland Museum Art School (now thePacific Northwest College of Art). Hoff obtained a B.A. in Asian Art fromThe Evergreen State College inOlympia, Washington, in 1973.[2]
Hoff has also studied architecture, music, fine arts, graphic design and Asian Culture. His studies in Asian Culture included reaching the certificate level in theJapanese Tea Ceremony. He had two years of apprenticeship in Japanese fine-tuning methods and four years of instruction in the martial art form oftai chi, including a year ofqigong. Prior to his career in writing, he worked as a tree pruner, antiques restorer, hospital orderly, investigative reporter, photojournalist, recording musician, singer, and songwriter. In the 1960s, Hoff helped form the rock–pop bandthe United Travel Service.[3][failed verification] In his spare time, he practices Taoistqigong andtai chi. He enjoys playing classical guitar, composing music and taking nature photographs.[2]
In 2006, Hoff published an essay on his website titled "Farewell to Authorship",[4] in which he denounced the publishing industry and announced his resignation from book-writing. This is the only website he has officially endorsed or been involved with. As of August 2010 the website[2] displayed a series of letters sent between Hoff and staffers from theOregon Historical Society, where Hoff criticizes the OHS-producedOregon Experience: Opal Whiteley, saying that many of the facts were ignored or untrue. Hoff wrote the 1986 bookThe Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow, a biography aboutOpal Whiteley which also includes her diary.
Benjamin Hoff has written five books: "The Way to Life" (1981), "The House on the Point" (2002), "The Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow" (1986),The Tao of Pooh (1982), andThe Te of Piglet (1992).The Tao of Pooh and its successor, "The Te of Piglet" are Hoff's best known books. They discuss Taoist beliefs and writings through Winnie-the-Pooh. "The Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow" is a biography ofOpal Whiteley, another American author from Oregon.
Hoff was awarded theAmerican Book Award in 1988 forThe Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow: The Rediscovered Diary ofOpal Whiteley.[5]The Tao of Pooh,The Te of Piglet, andThe Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow were all book-of-the-month choices.[citation needed]The Tao of Pooh andThe Te of Piglet were also chosen by the Quality Paperback Book Club.[citation needed]The Tao of Pooh was an international bestseller and spent 49 weeks on The New York Times' bestseller list.[citation needed]The Te of Piglet also became an international bestseller and spent 40 weeks on The New York Times' bestseller list.[6]
