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
- Ann Patchett’s 'Whistler' and 'Tom Lake' are novels written with love in mind June 12, 2026Novelist Ann Patchett has written about things as wild as hostage takeovers, fairy tales, and betrayed magicians’ assistants. But her new novel Whistler turns down the stakes to focus on the quieter complexities of human relationships. Today’s episode features two conversations between Ann Patchett and NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly. First, Patchett talks about Whistler and […]
- 'A Pair of Aces' is about two women who face down the mob in 1930s New York June 11, 2026Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray have just published new historical fiction. Their novel A Pair of Aces is about two women in 1930s New York who face down the mob and try to take down the infamous gangster Lucky Luciano. One of the protagonists is Eunice Carter, based on the real first Black female […]
