The daughter of artists, Ellen Behrens was raised in Clyde, Ohio, the setting for Sherwood Anderson’s “Winesburg, Ohio,” which might explain why stories captured her at such a young age. After several years of doing other things — from selling souvenirs to cleaning apartments — and completing a bachelor’s degree at Denison University in Ohio, she returned to campus at Bowling Green State University where she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing.
NPR’S BOOK OF THE DAY
- 'The Irish Goodbye' and 'Frog' are micro-memoirs and essays about everyday life March 6, 2026In today’s episode, two authors tackle everyday experience through short-form writing. First, The Irish Goodbye is a collection of micro-memoirs by the poet Beth Ann Fennelly. In these recollections, she considers childhood, marriage, and old friends – and she told NPR’s Scott Simon about the immense difficulty she had writing about her sister’s death. Then, […]
- 'An American Marriage' author Tayari Jones is out with a new novel 'Kin' March 5, 2026Tayari Jones, author of the 2018 novel An American Marriage, says her next book was supposed to be about gentrification in the American South. But while writing her draft, Jones says she realized the backstory of that project was actually the real story. That’s how her new historical fiction novel Kin was born. The book […]
NY TIMES BOOKS
- He Wrote Judy Blume’s Life Story. She Won’t Talk About It. March 8, 2026
- Tatjana Wood, Award-Winning Comic Book Colorist, Dies at 99 March 7, 2026
- Book Review: ‘Stories,’ by Helen Garner March 7, 2026
