Anthony Doerr

"Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever."

Anthony Doerr is the author of five books, The Shell Collector, About Grace, Four Seasons in Rome, Memory Wall and All the Light We Cannot See.

Doerr's short fiction has won three O. Henry Prizes and has been anthologized in The Best American Short Stories, The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories, and The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Fiction.

He has won the Rome Prize, and shared the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award with Jonathan Safran Foer. In 2007 Granta placed Doerr on its list of the "21 Best Young American novelists." In 2015 All the Light We Cannot See was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Doerr lives in Boise, Idaho, with his wife and two sons.

What are Anthony Doerr's most popular books?

His well-known books include All the Light We Cannot See, The Shell Collector, About Grace, Memory Wall, Four Seasons in Rome, and Cloud Cuckoo Land.

What genres and forms does he write in?

Doerr writes literary fiction and short stories and has also published non-fiction/memoir-style work (for example, Four Seasons in Rome).

Where should I start if I've never read him before?

A common starting point is All the Light We Cannot See (Pulitzer Prize winner). If you prefer short fiction, try The Shell Collector or Memory Wall to sample his stories.

Has he won major literary awards?

Yes. His short fiction has won three O. Henry Prizes; he has received the Rome Prize, shared the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award, was named one of Granta's 21 Best Young American Novelists, and All the Light We Cannot See won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

Is there a series or specific reading order to follow?

No, his books are stand-alone works rather than a series. You can read his novels and story collections in any order, choosing by theme or format (novel vs. short stories).