About the Author
Gene Wolfe (born May 7, 1931) is an
American science fiction and fantasy writer. He is noted for his
dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his
Catholic faith, to which he converted after marrying into the
religion. He is a prolific short story writer and a novelist, and
has won many awards in the field.
Wolfe was born in New York. He had polio
as a small child. While attending Texas A&M University, he
published his first speculative fiction in The Commentator, a
student literary journal. Wolfe dropped out during his junior year,
and was drafted to fight in the Korean War. After returning to the
United States he earned a degree from the University of Houston and
became an industrial engineer. He edited the journal Plant
Engineering for many years before retiring to write full-time, but
his most famous professional engineering achievement is a
contribution to the machine used to make Pringles potato chips. He
now lives in Barrington, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, with his
wife Rosemary.
Wolfe underwent double bypass surgery on
April 24, 2010.