Henry was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is an enrolled member of the
White Earth Band of Ojibwe of Minnesota. He received his PhD in literature from the
University of North Dakota and is currently a professor of English at Michigan State University. Henry's literary works have been recognized and highlighted at Michigan State University in their Michigan Writers Series. Henry's first novel,
The Light People (1994), explores Chippewa life and culture and the style takes some of its elements from the Chippewa style of oral story telling. He co-authored the textbook
Ojibwa and has released a book of poetry,
The Failure of Certain Charms, (Earthworks). In 2022, he published a second poetry collection, "Spirit Matters", (Holy Cow! Press). Gordon has also published short stories and poems in various journals and anthologies. ==Further reading==