-
It is 152 years today since Bertrand Russell was born.
The British philosopher and author Bertrand Arthur William Russel was born in Trelleck, Monmouthshire, Wales, to an aristocratic family that included the former Prime Minister Lord John Russell. His parents were liberal and advocated, among other things, the emancipation of women. Although his godfather was John Stuart Mill, the boy was brought up by his Presbyterian grandmother after he was...
-
It is 80 years today since W.G. Sebald was born.
Winfried Georg (W.G.) Sebald was born near the end of the Second World War in the Bavarian mountain village of Wertach where his mother had moved to get away from the bombing of the town of Bamberg. His parents, Rosa and Georg, had three children. His father, an officer of the Wehrmacht who had participated in the invasion of Poland, was a prisoner of war until 1947, but mentioning the war was...
Sample of Authors
Vila-Matas, Enrique
1948 -
Spanish author of essays, short stories and novels born in Barcelona, Catalonia. He studied law and journalism at...
Further reading
Flaubert, Gustave
1821 - 1880
The French author Gustave Flaubert, the son of a prominent surgeon, grew up in Rouen. Both his parents were atheists, and,...
Further reading
Ellis, Bret Easton
1964 -
American writer, the oldest of three siblings born and raised in a wealthy family at Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles. Ellis's...
Further reading
McCall Smith, Alexander
1948 -
The British author Alexander McCall Smith – called Sandy by family and friends – was born in Bulawayo in the then British col...
Further reading