Mary Doria Russell is a bestselling American author, renowned for her literature, fiction, fantasy, and science fiction novels. She was born in Elmhurst, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 1950. Her parents had a military background, with her father serving as a Marine Corps drill sergeant and her mother as a Navy nurse. Russell was raised in a family with strong Catholic roots, but she chose to leave the church at the age of fifteen.
After graduating from Glenbard East High School, Russell pursued her higher education, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Illinois, a Master’s in Social Anthropology from Northeastern University Boston, and a PhD in Biological Anthropology from the University of Michigan. She specializes in paleoanthropology and has studied cultural and social anthropology at the University of Illinois. Russell currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio, with her husband, Don, and their two dogs. She is known for being shy about online platforms, but she responds to all emails sent through her website.
Russell is considered one of the most versatile writers in contemporary American literature, with her novels being critically acclaimed and commercial successes. They are also studied in literature, theology, and history courses in colleges and universities across the United States. Her debut novel, The Sparrow, is a classic of speculative fiction, combining elements of First Contact science fiction and a tense courtroom drama. Its sequel, Children of God, is a sweeping three-generation family saga. Through the voices of unforgettable characters, these novels raise respectful but challenging fundamental questions about religion and faith. Together, the books have won eight regional, national, and international awards and have been optioned for Hollywood movies starring Antonio Banderas and Brad Pitt.
Russell has also ventured into 20th century history, with her novel A Thread of Grace being nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. The thriller is about the Jewish underground near Genoa during the Nazi occupation of Italy and has been praised for its meticulous historical detail and sharp character writing. Her fourth novel, Dreamers of the Day, is both a romance and a political novel about the 1921 Cairo Peace Conference, when Winston Churchill, T.E. Lawrence, and Gertrude Bell invented the modern Middle East. The novel was nominated for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Prize and is being adapted for the stage by Going to Tahiti Productions in New York City.
Russell's research skills are evident in her novels, as she holds a Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology from the University of Michigan. Before turning to writing, she taught human gross anatomy at the Case Western Reserve University School of Dentistry. Her fifth novel, DOC, is a murder mystery set in Dodge City in 1878, when the unlikely but enduring friendship between Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday began. The story has been optioned by Ron Howard and Akiva Goldsman for an HBO series.