Marisha Pessl
Encyclopedia
Marisha Pessl is an American
writer best known for her debut novel
, Special Topics in Calamity Physics
.
Pessl was born in Clarkston
, Michigan
, to Klaus, an Austrian
engineer for General Motors
, and Anne, an American homemaker
. Pessl's parents divorced when she was three, and she moved to Asheville, North Carolina
with her mother and sister. Pessl had an intellectually stimulating upbringing, recalling that her mother read "a fair chunk of the Western canon out loud" to her and her sister before bed, and entered her in lessons for riding, painting, jazz, and French. Pessl started high school at the Asheville School
, a private, co-educational boarding school, but graduated from Asheville High School in 1995. She attended Northwestern University
for two years before transferring to Barnard College
, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in English Literature.
After graduating, she worked as a financial consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers
, while writing in her free time. After two failed attempts at novels, Pessl began writing a third in 2001 about the relationship between a daughter and her controlling, charismatic father. Pessl completed the novel, titled Special Topics in Calamity Physics, in 2004, and it was published in 2006 by Viking Penguin to "almost universally positive" reviews, eventually becoming a New York Times Best Seller
.
Pessl's second novel, Night Film, a "psychological literary thriller[...]about a New York filmmaker looking into an apparent suicide", will be published by Random House
in May 2013.
Pessl married Nic Caiano, a hedge fund
manager, in 2003, and they lived in New York City
.
Pessl was also a contributing musician to The Pierces
' third studio album, Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge
, released in 2007: she is credited in the liner notes as having played the French horn on track 9 titled "The Power Of..."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer best known for her debut novel
Debut novel
A debut novel is the first novel an author publishes. Debut novels are the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to publish in the future...
, Special Topics in Calamity Physics
Special Topics in Calamity Physics
Special Topics in Calamity Physics is a novel by American writer Marisha Pessl. It is the author's debut novel. The book was first published in August 2006 by Viking Press, a division of Penguin Group. The book received many positive reviews and was named one of "The 10 Best Books of 2006" by the...
.
Pessl was born in Clarkston
Clarkston, Michigan
Clarkston, known officially by the name City of the Village of Clarkston, is a small city located within Independence Charter Township in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 882 at the 2010 census.-Overview:...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, to Klaus, an Austrian
Austrians
Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....
engineer for General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
, and Anne, an American homemaker
Homemaker
Homemaking is a mainly American term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping or household management...
. Pessl's parents divorced when she was three, and she moved to Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
with her mother and sister. Pessl had an intellectually stimulating upbringing, recalling that her mother read "a fair chunk of the Western canon out loud" to her and her sister before bed, and entered her in lessons for riding, painting, jazz, and French. Pessl started high school at the Asheville School
Asheville School
Asheville School is a private, coeducational, college-preparatory boarding school in Asheville, North Carolina. Founded in 1900, the Asheville School campus sits on in the Blue Ridge Mountains and currently enrolls 270 students in grades nine through twelve...
, a private, co-educational boarding school, but graduated from Asheville High School in 1995. She attended Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
for two years before transferring to Barnard College
Barnard College
Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...
, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in English Literature.
After graduating, she worked as a financial consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers is a global professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest professional services firm measured by revenues and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms....
, while writing in her free time. After two failed attempts at novels, Pessl began writing a third in 2001 about the relationship between a daughter and her controlling, charismatic father. Pessl completed the novel, titled Special Topics in Calamity Physics, in 2004, and it was published in 2006 by Viking Penguin to "almost universally positive" reviews, eventually becoming a New York Times Best Seller
New York Times Best Seller list
The New York Times Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. It is published weekly in The New York Times Book Review magazine, which is published in the Sunday edition of The New York Times and as a stand-alone publication...
.
Pessl's second novel, Night Film, a "psychological literary thriller[...]about a New York filmmaker looking into an apparent suicide", will be published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in May 2013.
Pessl married Nic Caiano, a hedge fund
Hedge fund
A hedge fund is a private pool of capital actively managed by an investment adviser. Hedge funds are only open for investment to a limited number of accredited or qualified investors who meet criteria set by regulators. These investors can be institutions, such as pension funds, university...
manager, in 2003, and they lived in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Pessl was also a contributing musician to The Pierces
The Pierces
The Pierces are an American New York-based band consisting of sisters Allison Pierce and Catherine Pierce .-Childhood:...
' third studio album, Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge
Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge
Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge is the third full-length album by The Pierces.Both "Three Wishes" and "Secret" appeared on the popular TV show Gossip Girl in the episode "Hi, Society", where The Pierces made a cameo appearance as well; the music video for "Boring" appeared on the DVD of season 1...
, released in 2007: she is credited in the liner notes as having played the French horn on track 9 titled "The Power Of..."
Novels
- Special Topics in Calamity PhysicsSpecial Topics in Calamity PhysicsSpecial Topics in Calamity Physics is a novel by American writer Marisha Pessl. It is the author's debut novel. The book was first published in August 2006 by Viking Press, a division of Penguin Group. The book received many positive reviews and was named one of "The 10 Best Books of 2006" by the...
(2006) - Night Film (forthcoming, May 2012)