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Arthur C. Clarke biography

Author Biography  | Books by this Author  | Read-Alikes

Arthur C. Clarke

Arthur C. Clarke

Arthur C. Clarke Biography

Arthur C. Clarke is considered the greatest science fiction writer of all time and an international treasure in many other ways, including the fact that an article by him in 1945 led to the invention of satellite technology. Books by Mr. Clarke--both fiction and nonfiction--have more than one hundred million copies in print worldwide.

Clarke was born in the seaside town of Minehead, Somerset, England on December 16, 1917. He moved to London in 1936 and joined the British Interplanetary Society to pursue his interest in space sciences. He joined the RAF in 1939 to fight in World War II, eventually becoming an officer in charge of the first radar talk-down equipment during its experimental trials. He returned to London and to BIS following the war, and also earned a first-class degree in mathematics and physics at King's College London during that time. He married an American divorcee, Marilyn Mayfield, in 1953, but divorced soon after and remained a bachelor the rest of his life. He emigrated to Sri Lanka in 1956, where he lived until his death on March 19, 2008.

In his early career, Clarke primarily wrote short stories, the first of which ("Loophole") was published in 1946. His first novel Prelude to Space, followed in 1951. His works won multiple awards, including two Hugos, three Nebulas, and one Academy award (for the screen play of 2001: A Space Odyssey). He was knighted by the UK in 1998.

Arthur C. Clarke's website

This bio was last updated on 03/14/2009. In a perfect world, we would like to keep all of BookBrowse's biographies up to date, but with many thousands of lives to keep track of it's simply impossible to do. So, if the date of this bio is not recent, you may wish to do an internet search for a more current source, such as the author's website or social media presence. If you are the author or publisher and would like us to update this biography, send the complete text and we will replace the old with the new.

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Books by Arthur C. Clarke at BookBrowse
The Last Theorem jacket 3001 jacket
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Read-Alikes

All the books below are recommended as read-alikes for Arthur C. Clarke but some maybe more relevant to you than others depending on which books by the author you have read and enjoyed. So look for the suggested read-alikes by title linked on the right.
How we choose read-alikes

  • Poul Anderson

    Poul Anderson

    Poul Anderson (1926-2001) was born in Pennsylvania of Scandanavian lineage. He received a degree in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1948, and his solid grasp of physics and science lent his books more credibility... (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    3001

    Try:
    Starfarers
    by Poul Anderson

  • Greg Bear

    Greg Bear

    Greg Bear was born in San Diego, California, on August 20th, 1951, to Wilma M. and Dale F. Bear. His father was in the navy so as a child he had traveled extensively to Japan, the Philippines and Alaska, as well as touring... (more)

    If you enjoyed:
    3001

    Try:
    Darwin's Children
    by Greg Bear

We recommend 4 similar authors

View all 4 Read-Alikes

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