Erik Larson

Erik Larson (born January 3, 1954) is an American journalist and author of mostly historical nonfiction books. His books include Isaac's Storm(1999), The Devil in the White City (2003), In the Garden of Beasts (2011), and Dead Wake (2015). The Devil in the White City won the 2004 Edgar Award in the Best Fact Crime category, among others. 

Larson was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Freeport, Long Island, New York. He studied Russian history at the University of Pennsylvania and graduated summa cum laude in 1976. After a year off, he attended the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, graduating in 1978. After seeing the movie All the President's Men, he was inspired to go into journalism.

Larson's first newspaper job was with the Bucks County Courier Times in Levittown, Pennsylvania, where he wrote about murder, witches, environmental poisons, and other "equally pleasant" things. He later became a features writer for The Wall Street Journal and Time. His magazine stories have appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, and Harper's publications.

Larson has written several books, primarily historical nonfiction. In a 2016 interview with the Knoxville Mercury, Larson stated he does all of his research, asking, "why should I let anybody else have that fun?" Among his literary inspirations, he included David McCullough, Barbara Tuchman, David Halberstam, and Walter Lord.

Larson's 2006 book Thunderstruck intersperses the story of Hawley Harvey Crippen with that of Guglielmo Marconi and the invention of radio.

Larson released his first audiobook novel, titled No One Goes Alone, on September 28, 2021.

Larson has taught nonfiction writing at San Francisco State University, the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, and the University of Oregon and has spoken to audiences across the United States.

Larson has lived in Philadelphia, Bristol, Pennsylvania; San Francisco; and Baltimore. He and his wife, Dr. Christine Gleason, have three daughters. They reside in New York City and maintain a home in Seattle, Washington.

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