Novelist, poet and essayist Elizabeth Rosner grew up in Schenectady, NY as a daughter of Jewish holocaust survivors. Much of her "emotionally autobiographical" work explores the impact of her parents' experiences on her own life, the indelible imprints of their history on her language, her identity, and her imagination.

Now living in Berkeley, CA, Ms. Rosner is a full-time writer, having been an instructor of creative writing and composition at the college level for nearly thirty years. She holds degrees from Stanford University, the MFA Program at UC Irvine, and the University of Queensland in Australia.

Her first novel, THE SPEED OF LIGHT (2001), a highly acclaimed national bestseller, was translated into nine languages. It won awards in the US (Ribalow Prize, Great Lakes Colleges New Writer's Award) as well as in Europe (finalist for Prix Femina, winner of Prix France Bleu Gironde). The book has been optioned by actress Gillian Anderson, who plans to make the film her directorial debut.

Rosner's second novel, BLUE NUDE (2006) was also a national bestseller. Its subject was inspired by her involvement with the Acts of Reconciliation Project, which brought together second generation Germans and Jews in order to confront their shared legacy from World War II.

Her prize-winning fiction and poetry have been appeared in journals such as Poetry, Another Chicago Magazine, and Southern Poetry Review. Her chapbook GRAVITY, one of the Select Poets Series, sold out of its 14th printing. Her essays have appeared in the NY Times Magazine, Elle, and many anthologies.

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