Andre Aci­man was born in Alexan­dria, Egypt, and is an Amer­i­can mem­oirist, essay­ist, nov­el­ist, and schol­ar of sev­en­teenth-cen­tu­ry lit­er­a­ture. He has also writ­ten many essays and reviews on Mar­cel Proust. His work has appeared in The New York­er, The New York Review of Books, The New York Times, The New Repub­lic, Conde Nast Trav­el­er as well as in many vol­umes of The Best Amer­i­can Essays.