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Erik Larson is the author of six New York Times bestsellers, most recently The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz, which examines how Winston Churchill and his "Secret Circle" went about surviving the German air campaign of 1940-41. Larson's The Devil in the White City is set to be a Hulu limited series; his In the Garden of Beasts is under option by Tom Hanks for a feature film. He recently published an audio-original ghost story, No One Goes Alone, which has been optioned by Chernin Entertainment, in association with Netflix. His Thunderstruck has been optioned by Sony Pictures Television for a limited TV series. Larson lives in Manhattan with his wife, who is a writer and retired neonatologist; they have three grown daughters.
Erik Larson's website
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Some writers have a lucky pen. Others a trusty notebook. Erik Larson has his weird monkey lamps. The pair of matching bronze lamps—each featuring a Capuchin monkey with a mischievous stare—look like props from The Wizard of Oz or a 1940s noir and sit in the office of Larson's Manhattan apartment, on opposite ends of the wood dining table that serves as his writing desk.
"These lamps are my favorite thing in here," Larson says over Zoom, patting one of the monkeys. He also has a Stay Puft Marshmallow Man figure and a straw lemur, among other curiosities, that remind him to have fun while working. His daily routine includes eating a Double Stuf Oreo at his desk each morning ("It's 60 calories I don't need, but it's a ritual") and having drinks when the day wraps. "At five o'clock, I hit a bell on my desk, turn on my Spotify playlist, and have a cocktail—a martini or a Manhattan—with my wife. To me, writing isn't a job. I love it."
The bestselling author of nine thrilling books, Larson has a unique power to animate history and make it accessible. His works—which have sold more than 10 million copies, according to his publisher, Crown, and have been translated into 35 languages—include&...
Caroline Alexander was born in Florida to British parents and has lived in Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean. She studied philosophy and theology at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar and has a doctorate in classics from Columbia ... (more)
If you enjoyed:
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Louis Bayard is the critically acclaimed bestselling author of nine historical novels, including Jackie & Me and The Pale Blue Eye, which was adapted into the global #1 Netflix release starring Christian Bale. His articles, ... (more)
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